Map to the Past
by Crea314
Summary: This is a story about a Manticore, a special Manticore, who doesn't know who, or what, she is. Follow her journey through a forgotten past. And please Review!!
1. Too Close to Call

I hope you all enjoy this story, and please review! Thanks!   
Disclaimer: I don't own the DA theme, characters, etc. Also, this first scene   
resembles The Matrix, however, this story does not follow that story line -- it's   
just a great action scene. :)   
Enjoy! :)   
  
******************************************  
  
Chapter One: Too Close to Call  
  
  
The computer screen blinked at the pair of emerald eyes that stared at   
it. They were on the 24th floor whish had been abandoned for some 30   
years; only the lower levels were used now. Dust particles could be   
seen filtering through the air as moonlight shown weakly in through the   
office-building window.  
  
  
The recently stolen laptop was getting Teli nowhere in her search,   
the software was too old and she couldn't navigate the web   
efficiently. But she had to get a hold of Kat, to warn her. In   
frustration Teli blinked her green eyes and slammed the laptop closed.   
That's when she heard it.  
  
  
****  
Officer McCarth crept silently across the hall, following three of his   
colleagues. He was more worried about falling through the floor boards   
this high up then he was about bring down this suspect -- just a girl   
from what he'd heard.   
  
  
The officer in the lead paused by the door and nodded to the three   
behind him. McCarth gripped his pistol, ready. The four officers   
burst through the door.  
  
  
"Freeze!" McCarth watched as a black-leather clad figure tensed and   
held still -- her back to the officers.  
  
  
"Hands on your head! Do it! Do it now!" The girl was turned slightly   
towards McCarth. He saw the subtle movements of a cable being flicked   
away and a small silver bracelet being snapped into place on her left   
wrist. The girl slowly raised her hands as she rose. One of McCarth's   
fellow PD edged slowly towards the girl.  
  
  
****  
Teli waited, patiently. She heard the officer's heart beat as he edged   
towards her, then, a nearly silence click of metal -- the handcuffs.   
Just as they were about to snap into place on Teli's wrist she spun,   
grabbing the man's wrist and twisting. The man's face consorted in   
pain as the bones snapped. Quick as lightning Teli leapt straight up   
in the air, executing a kick that sent the man flying into one of his   
colleagues. Both men flew into a wall, landed, and stayed still.   
  
  
****  
The cool night wind nipped at Renfro's cheeks as she stepped out of   
the hummer. Her calculating eyes swept over the scene and up the side   
of the old building. Her eye caught that of the lieutenant in charge.   
He tensed, as if thinking 'oh shit.'  
  
  
"Lieutenant." Renfro addressed, a false friendliness in her voice.   
The Lieutenant winced.  
  
"Lieutenant you were given specific orders." Renfrow arched her   
eyebrow speculatively.  
  
"You give me that my jurisdiction crap..." the man tried to threaten.  
  
"Those orders were for your protection." Renfro cut him off sharply.  
  
"I think we can handle one little girl." The man said, defensively and   
slightly amused. Renfro again, raised an eyebrow, a doubtful look,   
and turned back to the building.  
  
"I set two units. They're bringing her down now." The lieutenant   
called to her back. Renfro turned,  
  
"No lieutenant, your men are already dead." Renfrow walked from the   
man and picked up her walkie-talkie.  
  
"Send in the X7."  
  
  
  
****  
McCarth was too stunned to move. He'd just seen two big men be kicked   
across a room by a teenager. His partner went to shoot at the girl.   
But she moved like lightning, running up the walls in a smooth arc,   
avoiding all bullets. McCarth pulled his gun now too. The girl landed   
near him, spun into him and used his hand and gun to fell his partner.   
McCarth was shocked. Then, everything went black.  
  
  
  
****  
Teli stood, frozen in the middle of the room. Four dead policemen lay   
only a little ways from her feet. But she wasn't looking down. She   
was listening. Her heightened senses told her it wasn't over yet.   
Quickly, silently she slipped into the hall and headed for the stairs.   
Teli ran up the remaining four flights of steps to the roof, glancing   
behind her, trying to shake the feeling of someone following.   
  
  
No one was on the roof. No one, that is, as far as Teli could tell.   
Still, she ran. Over the rooftops, jumping from one to another -- the   
roofs here weren't too far apart and that aided in her swiftness. She   
had to circle back some, to get to her bike.  
  
  
Someone landed hard a roof away. Teli automatically ducked behind a   
block and glanced back. Nothing. Then, the shadow of a man. Teli   
didn't know how she knew, but she knew her pursuer was like her. She   
ran on.   
  
  
The buildings got farther apart and still Teli ran on, leaping over the   
wide gaps, which plummeted below her. The shadow ran on as well. Teli   
caught glimpses of him in her peripheral vision. She needed to find a   
way out. A train whistle blew. Teli got an idea.  
  
  
Thankfully Teli was not 28 stories up anymore. Luck was with her as   
she ran along the roof of the train station. As the black steamer   
moved swiftly along Teli leapt out into the air. She landed in a   
crouch, balancing with the movement of the train, and dared to see if   
the shadow had made it also. 'Shit.' Teli thought as the soldier   
landed on the last car.   
  
  
Teli's mind raced again, looking for a solution. She ran on, bent low   
and zigzagging over the top of the train to keep her balance. A light   
glimmered, and again, Teli had a plan -- and about two seconds to   
execute it.  
  
  
Teli made a flying leap off the train, making her body arrow shaped as   
she flew at the little third story window from which the little light   
shown. Her hands broke through the glass first; her quick mind warned   
her of the staircase. Teli tucked and rolled, landing at the bottom of   
the stairs on her back, just in time to see the shadow of her pursuer   
flash by, still on the train. Teli breathed a sign of relief and   
relaxed for a second, allowing herself to feel the aching in her   
muscles.  
  
  
"Get up Teli. Get up." She ordered herself. Within moments she was   
outside the building, scanning carefully. She slipped quietly through   
the streets, finding the back ally she was looking for. A silver   
motorcycle waited in the shadows, just where she'd left it.   
'No more computers for you!' Teli scolded herself as she zipped away   
into the night.  
  



	2. Sweet Sixteen

Chapter Two: Sweet Sixteen  
  
  
(Four Months Earlier)  
  
  
There was a birthday party at the Stevens' home -- the oldest daughter was turning 16. A few colored balloons tied to the mailbox waved in the wind and two old cars were parked outside the quaint little house nestled in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  
  
  
It was June 4, 2036. 17 years after the Pulse. America had come out of its depression -- but it still wasn't the world power or land of milk and honey it had been. And those days, few remembered the pre-Pulse era anyway.  
  
  
The Stevens' living room was cozy and inviting. Cherry-colored walls, pinewood floor, and comfy furniture surrounded a large fireplace. It was a modest little home, but comfortable and pleasant. The little family of four was nicely settled into their life.  
  
  
The family gathered around the birthday girl. Her slightly wavy, jet-black hair fell past her shoulders, her tan skin glowed, and her almond-shaped, emerald-green eyes glittered.   
  
  
"Open my present first Te!!" The excited bubble of a little brother.  
"Now Brian, let Teli decide for herself." Teli's mother, Jane Stevens, smiled down at the little blonde seven-year-old. Teli smiled at him to.  
"It's okay, Mom. Hand me your present Bri." A red and blue box came flying her way. Opening the box, Teli pulled out a small pocketknife with an angel carved in the wooden handle.  
"Do you like?! Do you like?!" Brian asked, excitedly.  
"Thank you Brian -- I love it." A teasing glint came into her eyes, "Especially since you broke my old one!" She winked.  
Little Brian's eyes got big and he stuck his tongue out at his sister.  
"Did not!" Then he leapt up, bouncing around with seven-year-old energy, "She liked it! Yeah!" Pausing to look at Teli, he said,  
"I wrapped it myself, too!" with obvious pride. Teli laughed. A tall man walked into the room and caught the boy.  
"Come here, you!" Brian shrieked with delight.  
"Thanks Dad." Teli smiled up -- happy to have the over-energized brother contained.  
  
  
"Open our present next sweetheart." An elderly lady with a fair complexion said. Teli grinned at her grandparents and opened their box. A leather-bound, gold-leafed journal appeared.  
"Oh! I love it. Thank you." Teli stood and gave each grandparent a hug.  
  
  
"Okay BB, go get ours now, be gentle!" Jane told her little boy. Brian burst into the kitchen, returning moments later with a big box. Teli gave her parents a 'now what is this?' look.  
  
  
The wrapping paper fell away and Teli lifted the top. The little head of a kitten popped out.  
"Oh wow - a kitten! He's so cute!" Teli exclaimed, obviously surprised.  
"Fresh from the pound, hon. We thought you would give him a good home."  
"Thank you, Dad. I will!" The little kitten squeaked a meow. It was black with four white feet, a white nose, and a white spot on the tip of its tail and on the back of its neck.  
"I don't know how Molly will like this though," Teli said. At the sound of her name, a young German Shepherd looked up and wagged her tail.  
  
  
  
**  
By midnight, everyone was asleep but Teli. Still energetic, she moved silently to her window, kitten and new journal in hand, and climbed out onto the roof to write.  
  
  
**  
Hundreds of miles away another dark-haired woman stood in front of a penthouse window -- looking out at the rainy night. She sighed, "16..." A tall man set his glasses down on a counter and walked up behind her.  
"11 years ago today." The woman whispered. Strong arms encircled her and pulled her in close.  
"Don't worry Max, you did good." He said, and kissed the back of her head.  
  
  
**  
"Dear Diary,  
  
  
I read in a journaling book that sometimes it's easier to write to someone - in effect, to name your journal. Since what I'm going to write is hard, from here on out it'll be "Dear Angel" -- you're named for my guardian angel, wherever she is.  
  
  
My first memory is of when I was five. I was in a small room with blue walls. I later learned I was in the adoption agency and was waiting for my new parents, Jane and Dave, to come get me. A young woman with dark hair was kneeling in front of me -- I was eye level with her. She was dressed all in black, toes to fingertips. She spoke:  
"Your name is Teli, your birthday in June 4th, 2020. You came from an abusive family -- for your own safety, do *not* try to find them. Understand?" I nodded. She smiled at me, kissed my forehead, and left. I must've been quite a sight for my parents to see -- after all, my head was shaved and I was wearing some sort of hospital-type gown.  
  
  
Jane and Dave were outside the door. I don't know how I heard them, I just know I did. As I listened I backed into a corner, defensively.  
"One thing you need to know before you see her," a doctor's voice, "she has a barcode on the back of her neck."  
"What?! Who would do that to a child?!" I would soon come to know that voice as Jane's; my mom's voice.  
"We don't know exactly, but we believe she was in a very abusive environment. She was probably tattooed for the same reasons cattle are branded..."  
"As property." Dave's gruff voice broke in.  
The three of them entered, Jane and Dave smiled at me, but I stayed silent. I went home with them that evening and I've been here, in this house and in this family, surrounded by love, ever since.  
  
  
I know it seems like a lot of detail for a five-year-old to remember - but that's it, exactly. There's a picture of it all in my mind. It's funny though -- I remember everything, and I mean *everything*, that's happened since then -- perfectly. What I don't understand then, is why I can't remember a single thing from before then. Absolutely nothing remains in my mind about my old family, zip, nada, nothing. The world I've come to know is the world I've known since I was five and was brought here.  
  
  
I've seen the girl since then -- in my dreams. Always clad in black, dark curls flying around her face. She's always running or fighting or sometimes hiding in my dreams, but I get the sense that she's helping me. I used to call her my guardian angel, but those kinds of angels are white, so I've re-named her: Dark Angel.  
  
  
  
-- Teli  
  
  



	3. Discoveries

Chapter 3: Discoveries  
  
  
"Teli, how late were you up last night?"  
"Late..." Teli answered, trying to dodge a lecture.  
  
  
"You're going to run yourself down Te, everyone needs sleep - even 16-year-olds!" Jane worried about her daughter, maybe just a little too much.  
"I know, I know. But what am I supposed to do, pretend to sleep even if I can't?" They'd been down this road many times before. Jane gave her daughter 'that look.' Teli groaned, grabbed a breakfast bar and dashed outside. 'It's not my fault I don't sleep. I just...don't need to...' Teli continued the argument in her head.  
  
  
Grabbing her bike, Teli headed off towards her best friend's house. Pedaling up the winding mountain road was easy for her; 'too easy,' she often thought. Teli reached another quaint mountain home, and saw that her friend's window was open. Teli cupped her hands together and blew a familiar call-whistle. A smiling blonde head appeared and whistled back.   
"Come on Kat, let's go!" Teli called up. The blonde disappeared from the window and soon the girl came running out of the small garage.  
"Katherine -- be back before supper!" A motherly voice called.  
"'K, Mom!" Kat grinned at Teli.  
"Hey girl, where to?" Teli grinned back.  
"Let's bike around the lake a ways." The girls set off on a familiar path, which went all the way around Lake Tahoe. They had made a deal to bike every day -- this was going to be their routine over the summer. With one week left of school, they figured it was a good time to start.  
  
  
Teli's slow, powerful strokes on the bike pedals glided her easily up the mountain path, in contrast to Kat, who was having a bit more difficulty - she had to stand and pump the pedals to keep up.  
"I think you're trying to tell me I'm not in shape or something Te." Kat called in a teasing tone, "'coz I just plain can't keep up today!" Kat laughed. But Teli frowned to herself; she hadn't meant to leave Kat in the dust.  
"Sorry girl, I've just got a funny feeling in my legs -- like I want to stretch or work, or something..."  
  
  
Kat was the only one who knew. Things Teli didn't understand about herself -- like how she could pedal up a mountain path at 20 mph and not break a sweat, disturbed her, and Kat provided a sympathetic ear, as well as a partner in solving the mystery.   
"Well, in that case Te, I think you *need* to go fast -- stretch those legs of yours!" Kat grinned at the idea forming in her mind.  
  
  
"What?" Teli wondered where Kat was going.  
"You wait right here for five minutes while I bike up on ahead. I'll stop at five minutes and at that point you start biking. Go as fast as you can and catch up. We'll time you. It'll be fun. 'Kay?"  
"You sure?" Teli was skeptical, but Kat didn't answer, she just smiled and grabbed Teli's watch.  
"Okay, watches on timer. Ready? 3, 2, 1, start!" Kat pedaled quickly away as they both hit START. As the fourth minute ticked off Teli put both feet on the pedals -- practicing staying upright at a standstill. 'This could get interesting,' Teli mussed.  
  
  
Five minutes. Teli burst out the standstill. Her muscles stretched and contracted, beginning to push harder. Teli could hardly believe the power she was already pushing out, or the sense of pure enjoyment she felt at being able to use her body to the max. She barely saw Kat as she swept by. Teli slowed and turned back towards Kat, remembering to hit stop on her watch.  
  
  
Kat had a puzzled look on her face, and she looked up.  
"What's your watch say, Tel?" Teli glanced down.  
"Five minutes and, whoa, 51 seconds." Teli looked up at her friend with wide eyes.  
"Yeah. Mine says five minutes and 48 seconds. Damn, girl. I could barely see you when you swept by."  
"Kat. That's impossible," Teli rested her forehead on her handlebars for a moment, "Not to mention, not normal." Kat smiled sympathetically at her friend.  
"Don't worry Teli. Yes, you're a mystery, but we'll figure you out!" Kat winked to lighten the air. Teli almost giggled.  
"Thanks, girl." They both smiled.  
"All right, enough of this, let's go get some ice cream!" Teli laughed at her friend's words.  
"I though the biking was to be in shape." Kat gave that comment a skeptical look.  
"Well, we'll finish the ride after we get the cream. Now step on it!" Teli just shook her head at Kat and pedaled off after her.  
  
  
  
*******  
"Come on Molly, let's go!" The young dog leapt up, excited to be going out. It was early -- 5:30 in the morning. But Teli, as usual, has already been up for hours and needed to get out.  
  
  
Molly ran ahead, up the mountain their house was nestled into. Molly knew where they were going and was eager to start checking out the new smells. Teli smiled as the dog bounded up the incline.  
  
  
Teli walked for 15 minutes before she reached her spot. She quickly climbed up the large boulder-and-rock pile to the flat spot that was at the top. From there she could see the whole little valley where Lake Tahoe resided and the little resort town that had sprung up around it. This was where Teli came to be along with her thoughts.  
  
  
Molly was snuffing around at the base of the rock pile. Teli smiled slightly as she listened to her root around. Molly started digging at the soft dirt, looking for something. Teli closed her eyes and concentrated on the soft, pleasant sounds. 'I love the sound of dried pine needles crunching, silly Molly,' Teli thought, 'I wish I could hear a little better, though.' Teli strained to hear better. Suddenly, her ear felt like the ear drum had opened up, and the noise of Molly's digging got very loud. Now Teli could hear not only the digging, but also Molly's breathing and even her heart beating.  
  
  
Teli's eyes shot wide open and she shook her head. The noise dropped back to normal levels and her eardrums 'closed' again.  
"What the hell?! That was whack!" Teli said aloud to herself. "How many more things am I going to discover about this deranged body?!" Teli asked, frustrated.  
  
  
Teli was distracted from her thoughts when she sensed something else, something suspicious. Without really meaning to, Teli zoomed her hearing back in on the noises Molly was making. Molly's heartbeat... and another, faster heartbeat.  
"Molly! Get out of there!" Teli yelled. Molly jumped up and ran up the rock to Teli, just barely evading a porcupine that was about to leave spines in Molly's nose.  
  
  
Teli smiled and hugged her dog. 'Well, at least these whacked out abilities of mine come in handy sometimes...' she thought.  
  
  
  
*******  
Dear Angel,  
  
  
Today has been a day of discoveries. Not only can I bike a mile a minute, I can change my hearing just like I can with my eyes. Will the discoveries ever end...? What I'm wondering is why I'm figuring all this out *now*. I mean, I must've always had these... functions and just not known about them. Maybe I was suppressing them in my subconscious or something. Though, it feels more like I'd forgotten and now I'm remembering. Odd, very odd. Well, going on...  
I had a dream about you again. You were running through a long, dark, hallway -- the only light was from some huge old window. Two little kids, I think, were following you. Then we were outside and you jumped over a 15-foot fence, easily. Maybe that means you're like me. I know you're out there somewhere, and you hold the key to the secrets of my life. Please come back.  
  
-Teli  
  
  



	4. A Visionary

A Visionary  
  
****  
Every time Teli called up the time on her internal clock and read it in the corner of her   
cornea, it was at most a minute later then when she had last used it. Teli sighed; the   
nights were long when she couldn't sleep - which was often. She was waiting for it to be   
1:00 when she knew all would surely be asleep and she could rise in peace to write.   
12:58. Close enough.  
  
  
"Dear Angel,  
  
  
I figured we'd be getting to know each other pretty good, so I thought I'd fill ya   
in on some back ground of mine. Especially since I realized I've already mentioned them   
and haven't explained... You see, I have these... powers. And we're not talking normal   
human stuff here. I'll go chronologically...  
  
  
The fist 'power' (maybe I should say ability) I found was my eyesight. I was at a Christmas  
parade with my dad - it was the first one Brian had ever been to. Actually, it was only   
the second one I'd ever been to - after the US came out of the depression it took a while   
for the old customs to come back. Anyway, I'm straying from my story. So, we're at this   
parade, moms got Brian and I'm sitting on my dad's shoulders, happy as could be. Well, we   
see the big sled start drifting along in the distance (and I'm talking a good quarter mile   
away) and I'm wishing I could see it better. I strained and strained my eyes to see it   
better. That's when it happened. All of a sudden my vision blurred and zoomed in. I   
could see Santa clear as could be. Course, I was all excited about this - I saw the big   
man before my little bro after all! So, I said "Mommy! Santa's got reindeer on his buttons!"   
Proud as could be of knowing that little detail first. I'll never forget the look she shot my   
father as she replied, "I'm sure he does sweetie." My vision had   
returned to normal by then and I looked back, surprised to find Santa so far off again.   
  
  
Well, after that I practiced this 'zoom vision' thing until I'd gotten it down pat.  
Course, I didn't tell anyone, I remembered all too clearly the look on my mother's face.   
Soon after that I discovered my inferred vision. Yeah, inferred. I went to pick up a bowl  
of soup, fresh out of the microwave (they finally came back!) and again, suddenly my vision  
switched to all these colors - the bowl being quite red, indicating it was hot. Don't ask   
me how; I don't even pretend to understand it. Maybe once I'd found the zoom function it   
was easier to find the others... yeah, I said others - I can also see quite easily in the   
dark, not to mention my retinal clock. Who knows if there are other functions I haven't   
found yet... anyway, it's not like I'll be telling anyone.  
  
  
I'll save some more for next time.  
  
  
-- Teli"  
  
  
Teli signed her name with a flourish, happy to have relieved some of her secrets to the journal.   
She looked out her window over the sleepy mountain town with a sigh.  
  



	5. ATP Processing

Chapter 5: ATP Processing  
  
  
It was the last week of school. Teli's sophomore biology class was being rowdy, despite the fact that they had an exam the next day. The teacher, Mr. Kowalski, was ignoring the commotion while writing key facts and concepts on the old, tired chalkboard. Finishing the last sentence, Mr. Kowalski turned to the class slowly, prepared for battle.   
A paper airplane glided swiftly on the air, landing with a subtle 'plop' right into the textbook in the old teacher's hands. Without reacting, Mr. Kowalski peered over the glasses, which had already slipped down his nose.  
  
"Matthews, out of my class. Now." It was a stern order, which Jon Matthews obeyed, a bit sheepishly, to a chorus of giggles from the glass. A wad of rolled up notebook paper also sailed across the room, just in time to hit the window of the door as it shut, bouncing off into the trash. A low high five was heard in the back corner.  
  
"You'll be next Davis." Mr. Kowalski warned, a bit more harshly. Teli grinned and winked at her friend Kat, the thrower.   
  
"Now, class, who can describe for me the processes in which animal cells produce ATP?" A collective groan arose from the class. The groan seemed to be the last straw - Mr. Kowalski has been through 6 periods of this already, and had one more to go. 'They wanted tough, they'll get tough!' He thought to himself. He slammed the book down on the desk in front of him, shocking the class into attention.  
  
"Stevens! ATP processing. Now!" Teli snapped to attention. Literally. Her back went ramrod straight, her eyes un-focused and her hands went straight out on the desk in front of her. Her mouth started speaking words, but her mind showed her an entirely different picture.  
  
"Incorrect!" An electric shock coursed through the little girls hand.  
  
"Again, soldier. ATP processing. Now!" The little girl spoke quickly while maintaining her perfect 'at-attention' posture. The words that flowed out of her mouth were correct this time.  
  
"... inside the matrix of the cells a gradient is established ... "  
  
  
  
"... thus producing ATP." Teli stopped talking. Her eyes once again focused on the room around her. Her classmates looked mildly shocked. Mr. Kowalski wore a slightly amused, yet also shocked, expression.  
  
"Teli, I did not learn that much detail until I was a PhD students. Mind telling me where you picked it up...?"  
  
"Um...." Teli didn't even know. The bell rang. 'Thank God!' Teli thought, as her class forgot their initial shock and scurried out of the classroom. Teli followed on Kat's heels.  
  
  
At there lockers, Kat put a hand up to Teli's forehead.  
  
"Hmm... looks like an overwhelming case of overstudyitis, my recommendation, two weeks of straight TV and lots of late night parties, not to mention my 12 step program..." Teli swatted her friend's hand away, but couldn't help but laugh.   
  
"You are such a psycho Kat!" Teli laughed.   
  
"I'm just looking out for ya, don't want you to kill all your brain cells from over exposure to homework." Teli shook her head with a smile.   
  
"Seriously though, Tel, where did you learn that?" Kat asked as they walked towards their next class. Teli's face went blank.  
  
"I don't know Kat, I just don't know."  
  



	6. Party Spirit

Chapter 6: Party Spirit  
  
  
"Damn girl, looking good!" Teli playfully rolled her eyes at Kat in response. The two girls were dressed to impress for their night out, Kat in her black leather mini and silver top, Teli in dark red leather pants and shimmering black top.   
  
"You ready or not?" Teli asked as Kat took one last glance in the mirror.  
  
  
The girls stepped into the used-to-church where the party was being held. The big open room was already crowded with people and the music was blaring.   
  
"And how did you find out about this...?" Teli asked Kat  
  
"Jon Mathews told me. Come on, let's dance." Kat grabbed Teli's arm and pulled her along into the middle of the dance floor. The music had a good beat and the two girls started dancing a path through the crowd, ignoring the appreciating glances tossed their way by some non-too-sober guys. They spotted a group of their friends from bio class and headed that way.  
  
"Hey! You made it!" Jon said as he gave Kat an enthusiastic hug.   
  
"Yeah, we sure did." Kat answered. Teli raised her eyebrows at this little display.  
  
"You didn't tell me he was a flirt..." Teli whispered to Kat. Kat just gave her an 'I don't know what you're talking about....' look with a sly smile. The song changed and the little group flowed easily into the new rhythm. Someone had pushed three of the huge speakers together to form a mini-stage and soon Teli found herself lifted up above the crowd, dancing on the speakers. Kat and Jon were soon up there with her. A few whistles and shouts floated across the crowd, at which Teli laughed with a role or her eyes, wondering just how much beer had been past around...   
  
  
By midnight, Teli had found the best strategy to avoid being hit on by the less then desirable males. She just completely ignored them. It was almost amusing. In the process of avoiding the gaze of yet another drunk imbecile, Teli happened to look up towards the back wall. Her attention was caught by a pair of silvery blue eyes, half hidden behind a few red locks. A shiver ran down Teli's spine as she held the intense gaze for a moment more.  
  
"You know Te, I'm almost feeling sorry for all these guys, and you won't even look at them." Kat broke in. Teli tore her eyes away and focused on Kat, trying to clear her mind enough to answer.  
  
"Exactly, eye contact gives them a reason to stick around. Not something I want to happen." Teli finally answered. Kat gave her a funny look, but continued anyway.  
  
"Come on Te, you gotta feel sorry for guys sometimes, they're prisoners of their genes." Teli suppressed a laugh.  
  
"So are dogs." Now it was Kat's turn to laugh.  
  
"I give up!" Kat threw her hand in the air, just as Jon slid up behind her. Teli could immediately tell he was a bit more intoxicated then when they'd first arrived.  
  
"Hey baby..." Kat immediately tensed as Jon slid his hands onto her hips. Kat plastered a fake smile on her face and tactfully tried to remove his grip.  
  
"Oh, come babe, don't you wanna dance with me?" Jon gripped one of Kat's wrists and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close.  
  
"Um, I don't think so..." Kat shot Teli a wide-eyed 'what the hell is this guy doing?!' look. Teli took action.  
  
"Listen buddy," Teli shoved her way between Jon and Kat, grabbing the front of Jon's shirt and yanking him down, "you leave Kat alone, and I'll play nice, anything more," Teli paused for effect, tightening her grip, "and you're history."  
  
"Whoa, looks like I picked the wrong girl." Jon slurred, now trying to grind with Teli instead, completely missing the threat.  
  
"Look asshole, if you think you can come over here, drunk as all hell, hit on my friend and then on me, then you've got a surprise coming." Teli threatened, now close to yelling. Jon didn't answer; he just let his gaze slide over Teli's body. That was the last straw. Teli shoved Jon , he flew backwards as she readied a punch.   
  
"Whoa, whoa, hold on Te!" Kat grabbed Teli's arms the second she realized what Teli was about to do. Another guy jump in to grab Jon as he tried to stagger to his feet.  
  
"Let go Kat, this guys got a lesson to learn." Teli said through clenched teeth, not taking her glare away from Jon. The guy who had pulled Jon away spoke up.  
  
"I think he's learned it." Teli was enchanted by this new deep voice, rough and sparkling in her ears. Startled, Teli tore her eyes away from Jon and connected with silvery-blue ones. The tall, redheaded stranger turned slightly, handing Jon off to a friend, who helped him lurch away. His gaze returned to Teli immediately.  
  
"Thanks." Teli said, a little wearily, not quite ready to relax. He nodded and held out his hand.  
  
"Shane." Teli paused, then replied.  
  
"Teli." She took his hand, rough and warm against hers. Shane grinned, dazzlingly charming. His friend who had take Jon away returned.  
  
"Come on man, we gotta get outta here." Shane reluctantly tore his eyes away from Teli's and nodded to his friend.  
  
"Catch ya later, then?" Shane asked Teli.  
  
"Yeah." Shane smiled again with a nod, and followed his friend out through the crowd. Teli followed the back of his head until he disappeared.  
  
"Um, what was that?" Kat broke in to Teli's thoughts.  
  
"Huh?" Teli asked  
  
"Hello! You and that guy! Mind telling me what's up?"  
  
"Whatever Kat, I think it's time we got outta here."   
  
"Alright Te," Kat answered with a laugh, "but I bet we'll be seeing more of him."  
  
"Right Kat... come on lets go." Teli said with a 'let's forget it' tone - but Kat saw the look on her face, and knew better.   
  
  
  
  
****  
Dear Angel,  
  
To stray away from my usual topic... Kat dragged me off to this end-of-the-year party tonight. I must say, I'm not unhappy I went! I had to deal with a bunch of drunks and a guy harassing my friend, but it all paid off when I saw those silvery blue eyes. Shane. I think Kat was right, I will be seeing more of him. Well, at least, I sure hope so!  
  
  
-- Teli  



	7. Mining for Answers

Teli had worked hard to convince her father to let her go. It had taken a good hour of solid convincing skills, but in the end, daddy's little girl won out. Teli was now on her way to Virginia City - a small, quaint little town that used to be a mining village.   
Teli, Kat, Diane and Meg had set out on the road trip early and were now reaching the little village with a good two hours to spare before they would be hungry enough to get lunch.   
  
"I nominate Teli to be our official driver!" Kat said as she checked her watch, "'coz only Te could get us here in that amount of time!"   
"Come on Kat, I didn't drive that fast." Teli argued playfully back.   
"I dunno Teli," Meg spoke up, "we certainly flew through that mountain pass back there..."   
"Nearly scared me to death!" Diane added.   
"Please, I got us here, didn't I?" Teli defended, pulling the car into a parking spot.   
"Yeah, yeah. We'll give you that. Now, come on people, let get moving!" Kat bounded out of the car, tossing that last comment back over her shoulder.   
  
The four girls stepped out onto the wooden walkway that wound its way through the little town. Mostly a tourist stop now, the girls were greeted with old fashion style as they looked around.   
"It's amazing how this place looks, even now. I'd have though the Pulse would've had an effect here to." Meg commented.   
"I'm sure it did, these people were just smart enough to preserve the place." Diane replied, logically.   
"Yeah, after all, tourism always resurfaces." Kat added with a touch of sarcasm.   
"Okay, now that we've established that . . ." Teli trailed off.   
" . . . It's time to get a tourin'!" Kat finished. They all giggled and began their walk through the town.   
  
Several shops and one purchase later, the girls decided to break for lunch in half an hour and then go on the tour of the old mining site. Teli was eager to see the mining tour and pan for gold nuggets at the end.   
But at an old fashion clothing store, a darker factor came into play. Teli reached out to touch an old dress and saw to her horror that her hand was trembling uncontrollably. Teli quickly shoved the hand into her pocket and back up against a wall.   
  
"Hey guys, mind if we break for lunch a little early, I'm starved over here." Teli forced her voice to be calm and playful.   
"Five more minutes Teli, we found come crazy old costumes back here!" Meg called in reply. Teli didn't respond. The shaking in her hands wasn't going away and try as she might, Teli could not control it. 'Great, the one day I forget the pills, it happens. Milk, Tryptophan is in milk...' Teli struggled to read the memory of the note in her mind.   
"Okay Teli, we're ready." Teli looked up again at Diane, who had spoken.   
"Great, lets get going." Teli answered with a little difficulty.   
  
Kat was giving Teli a funny look. Teli could feel her worried eyes, but chose to ignore them. Keeping both hands safely tucked away in her pockets, Teli led the way to a little deli.   
They were seated quickly and Teli shot the milk order to the waitress before she'd even been seated. But when it came, Teli couldn't reach for it. Not because she couldn't use her hands, but because Teli knew Kat would see, and question her. Teli didn't want to be questioned about something she didn't fully understand herself.   
Finally, a few guys entered the deli and distracted Kat. Teli downed the glass of milk quickly. The shaking subsided almost immediately.   
"Looks like we've got a couple hotties - on a scale of 1 to 10 I'd say we've got a 6, a 7 and a, ooh, and a 9. Nice." They all laughed at Diane's commentary.   
"Remind me Diane, how do those ratings work again?" Teli asked, teasing, as she set her milk glass down.   
"Well..." Diane started dramatically, "first off, to be a ten is nearly impossible, so guys shouldn't even shoot for that one."   
"If they shoot for anything." Kat interjected, teasing. Diane shot her a glare and continued.   
"The first criterion under inspection is, of course, the body. Can't be too skinny but also can't be too bulky - I don't like that 'look-at-me-I've-got-way-too-much-muscle' look. So, we're looking for that tall, lean but powerful, over all...yummy look." Diane had to pause to take a breath. This allowed Teli and Kat to exchange a look a start giggling.   
"The second part is the face. A guy needs to have a good set of cheekbones, nice eyes and good hair. Let me stress that last part: good hair!" Diane paused for emphasis.   
"Okay! Okay! We get it!" Kat giggled, throwing her hands up in a 'stop-before-we-die-laughing' gesture.   
"Hopeless my friend, you are hopeless." Meg added to Diane, managing to get it out through the giggles. That succeeded in cutting off the criteria discussion. Teli used the attention the girls were attracting to catch the waitress' eye and signal for more milk.   
  
Finally getting control of her giggles Diane went looking for another topic. Her curiosity was caught by Teli's bracelet, a familiar enough sight.   
"So Teli, do you ever take that bracelet off? I don't think I've ever seen you without it." Teli, now relatively used to the question, simply replied,   
"Nope." And hoped they'd leave it at that.   
"Why not?" Meg asked. Teli sighed to herself, it really wasn't something she wanted to explain, so she used the explanation most people fell for.   
"It's all I have left of the family I had before I was adopted." It wasn't a lie; it just wasn't a full truth either.   
"Can I see it?" Meg asked. For the first time, Teli hesitated.   
"Uh, sure." Teli slipped both hands under the table, removed the bracelet and handed it to Meg. She did it so quickly that only Kat noticed that she left her left hand under the table. Meg and Diane examined the bracelet. It was silver with an interesting, ancient-feline looking symbol that repeated itself over and over. Kat had seen it a hundred times, but was curious why Teli wasn't showing her other hand.   
"You must have quite a tan line from that thing Te, seeing as you wear it 24/7." Teli just looked up at Kat and shrugged. The bracelet was returned, replaced, and Teli's left hand re-appeared on the table. Teli's right hand signaled for another glass of milk.   
  
"Damn girl, enough milk?" Kat asked as they rose to leave, noticing the five empty milk glasses.   
"Does the body good." Teli replied. Her eye caught sight of a health food store across the street. 'Tryptophan, I bet they sell it. Well, hopefully.' Teli thought.   
"I'll be right back." Teli said quickly as she ducked into the little store. Thankfully, she found a little bottle of the amino acid, bought it, and returned quickly to her friends.   
"What'd you do in there?" Kat asked.   
"Nothing. Can I put this in your purse?" Teli handed Kat the little brown bag. She wouldn't be able to take any now, not with all her friends around. If it had just been Kat, it might have been alright, but as it was, she couldn't risk it.   
  
The tour of the mine took the girls through the old site on the former mine cart lines. The girls rode in pairs in the carts along with a few other tourists. Teli and Kat were in the last cart. They slowly wound their way through the outdoor site, where the gold and later silver had been cleansed, weighed and sent off. But the best part of the tour was yet to come. The carts slowly made their way towards the looming hole in the mountain where they would enter the actual mine. The tour leader sat down in front to avoid being hit by the low ceiling.   
Just as they started to enter the old mine, Teli felt her hands start to shake again. Perhaps it was the quick transition from light to almost total dark, but the moment they entered the mine, the shaking wasn't just in Teli's hands. Teli fought to remain in control, but her whole body started convulsing. 'Thanks god it's Kat next to me.' Teli though wildly.   
"Teli? Are you okay? You're trembling." Kat whispered, as if on cue.   
"Just...cc... coolldd." Teli wavered out.   
"Te, you're way worse then cold!" Kat hissed into Teli's ear.   
"Get... pills... bag...in your... purse... now!" Teli whispered. Kat quickly dug into her purse and brought out the little brown paper bag. The little bottle Teli had just bought was soon in Kat's hand.   
"How many?" Kat asked.   
"About three sh...should do it." Kat quickly got three pills and put them into Teli's mouth. With a little difficulty, Teli managed to swallow them. It took a minute, but the shaking slowly died down and then stopped totally. Teli breathed a sigh of relief.   
"Thanks Kat."   
"Anytime..." Kat still sounded quite worried.   
"Give me two more, just in case." Kat gave Teli a questioning look, but handed her the pills anyway. Teli downed them and felt a little relieved.   
"So....?" Kat asked, questioningly.   
"Later. I promise." Teli said quickly as the carts left the mine. The tour guide stood up and Teli flashed him a smile.   
  
Meg and Diane didn't suspect a thing. Teli was glad. They spent another half-hour panning for gold at the end of the tour. No one had any luck, but it was still fun to try. Finally, the girls were ready to say good-bye to Virginia City.   
Kat grabbed the keys from Teli as they walked back to the car.   
"Hey! Come on, I'm the official driver, remember." Kat just shot her a look.   
"Whatever, it's my turn. Though, I won't be going to break your record."   
  
  
****   
"Dear Angel,   
Today was a scary day. The first time I ever had a seizure was when I was nine. I woke up and my hands were shaking. I drank a glass of milk and was fine. That's happened four times since then. Only one other time has anything but my hands been affected, and even that wasn't like today. I guess I always knew there was a possibility for me to have a real seizure, but I never thought it'd actually happen. You see, when the Stevens first brought me back here, I found a note pinned inside my blue, hospital gown getup. It said: 'Teli, you may experience seizures due to a chemical imbalance in your brain. If you feel your hands start to shake, you have to get Tryptophan immediately. It's found in milk, but you can also buy it in pill form. I hope this doesn't happen to you, but if it does, at least you'll know what to do.' It was signed "- MG". That's how I knew what was happening when my hands started to shake. God I was scared today. I hate not being in control. But today... today I was helpless. It's a feeling I've never had before, and it frightened me. I really hope that never happens again.   
I get the feeling that you, Dark Angel, know the secrets to my life. Please, give me guidance. I only want the truth.   
-- Teli" 


	8. Connections

Chapter 8: Connections  
  
****  
  
The chestnut colt pranced excitedly towards the track for his morning workout. He knew he would get to gallop today and was raring to go. His handler, a tall, dark-haired teen, laid a settling hand on the colt's neck as they walked.  
  
"Easy Intrepid, you're almost there." Tye's voice soothed. The colt settled almost immediately.   
  
"Tye!" A singsong voice called, "you forgot Intrepid's badge."   
  
"Thanks Ali." Tye smiled as he took the badge from the pretty brunette and clipped it to the colt's bridle. Intrepid snorted at the badge, but let Tye clip it on anyway. What the colt didn't like was the piece of lone newspaper that floated by. It was a bit much; the colt jumped suddenly sideways. Tye put one hand on the horse's shoulder, and the other arm instinctively pushed Aliana behind him. A few little tugs on the colt's bridle and Intrepid was once again settled and paying attention to Tye. Aliana gave Tye a playful punch on the shoulder.   
  
"You goof, I don't need protecting from a spooking horse, I've been around them longer then you have!" Aliana had a playful smile on her face, but she had a point.  
  
"Come on, just 'coz you've got five years on me doesn't mean much." Tye played back.  
  
"Yeah, but the first five years of a child's life are when some of the most crucial things are learned." Aliana put on her best 'top that!' look. Tye just smiled and shook his head.   
  
"Aliana!" Tom, the head trainer called, "Leave that boy alone so he can get that colt to his rider. I've got a workout to finish."   
  
"Okay Dad!" Aliana called over her shoulder. "Gotta go." She said to Tye.   
  
"Catch ya later." Tye said with a smile. A butterfly flapped its wings in Aliana's stomach, as it always did when Tye's emerald green eyes connected with hers, but as usual, she shook it off.  
  
Tye watched Aliana until she turned the corner to go back to the barn then turned to the colt.   
  
"Come on boy, you've got a workout to do."  
  
****  
"Okay Sally, one more time. If side A is proportional to side C and we know angle B then we can find side B. See?" Teli indicated to the Geometry book. It was the last study hall of the year and Teli had agreed to tutor Sally for her final exam. It wasn't going so well; Sally was getting frustrated.  
  
"But how with angle B? I don't get this. Why do I even care what side B is?!" Sally complained. Teli glanced down at side B, which was 7.8 cm.  
  
"Alright Sally, we'll stop there for now. Go take a brake and get some water or something, okay?" Sally's relieved smile was all the answer Teli needed.  
  
"Thank you! I'll be back in a minute!" Sally said as she dashed off. Teli leaned back in her chair and sighed. Sometimes it was hard to explain things that just came naturally for her. And something else was bothering Teli: she just couldn't seem to shake the prickle in the back of her mind that seemed to say someone was watching her.   
  
  
"Teli?" A newly familiar voice asked. Teli looked up, Shane was walking up to her, a smile on his face.   
  
"Hey." Teli could hardly keep the grin from taking over her whole face. "I didn't even realize you went to this school!" A little chuckle escaped Shane's lips.  
  
"Well, after this week, I won't!"   
  
"Lucky." Teli replied. Shane smiled and nodded, but didn't continue in that line of the conversation. Teli felt a now familiar shiver as he caught her eye; she knew what he would say next.  
  
"So, I was thinking, maybe we could hang out on Friday night, you know, go to dinner or something?" Teli could see the confidence in his eyes, but she wasn't about to disappoint.  
  
"Yeah, that'd be great, I'd love to." She said with a grin.  
  
"Okay then, pick you up at 7?"  
  
"Sounds good."   
  
"Alright then." With a charming smile and a nod, Shane turned and walked away. Teli followed him with her eyes until he rounded a corner, then sighed, not realizing until that moment she had been holding her breath. 'Maybe he was why I had that being-watched feeling. I can handle that.' Teli thought with a smile.  
  
  
  
Sally came back, seeming refreshed. Teli set to the task of tutoring with a new enthusiasm. Until, that is, she got the prickly feeling in the back of her mind again.  
  
  
  
****  
Dear Angel,  
  
Sometimes I'm able to forget my worries, the mystery of my past, what I don't understand about me. Sometimes. But then days like today happen and these tiny little incidents bring it all back. You see, I was tutoring Sally and I kept getting this funny prickly in the back of my mind - I swear I was being watched. But see, why wouldn't I sense this some other time earlier? And it wasn't just that 'oh, maybe someone is looking at me' it was 'warning: under surveillance.' For a moment I thought it was Shane but it kept happening after he left. It was just... creepy.  
  
On a happier note, I have a date on Friday. That should be fun. And Friday is the last day of school. Just have to get through these final exams. Not that I'll have to study or anything, a perfect photographic memory does come in handy. Night.  
  
  
-Teli 


	9. Searching

Chapter 9 -- Searching  
  
  
"Okay Tel, are you ready to do this? For real?" Kat sat down at the computer and glanced over her shoulder with a questioning look.   
  
"Yeah, lets do it." Teli sat down next to her. They had picked this day to start to search in earnest for clues to Teli's past. Kat started typing. She didn't consider herself a computer hacker by any means, but she was proud of her ability to find the information she was looking for. Soon she was connected and had opened her favorite starting search engine.   
  
"Alright, ready. Which clue should we start with?" Kat asked Teli. Teli paused to think.  
  
"Well, I'd say either start with Eyes Only or the barcode." Teli finally replied.  
  
"Run me through the Eyes Only info. I don't think I know that part, but I'd say that'd be the best place to start."   
  
"Well, Eyes Only is who got my adoption papers and found me my home with Jane and Dave."  
  
"Teli, you never told me that! You must be a special case then, 'coz adoptions aren't usually the type of work Eyes Only does." Teli just shrugged. Kat took that as a go ahead and started searching. There were plenty of web pages that followed what Eyes Only did, but the actual Informant Net was, naturally, impossible to find. Kat spent the good part of an hour tying to find any lead or some information that would help. Every few minutes Teli would spot a possible opening to the net, but she wasn't ready to pull out that ability quite yet, not even for Kat.  
  
"I dunno Te, I've tried everything I know, but I can't find it. Makes me wonder how his sources contact him... Should we try the barcode clue?" Kat finally asked. Teli thought for a moment and then nodded. Kat returned to her original search site and started looking for tattoo parlors and hits on other people with barcode tattoos. It took another hour, but Kat finally found a few hits.  
  
"Okay. Looks like we've finally found something. Got a Michele Hanover, arrested by in '09, had a barcode on the back of his neck. Got a suspected cat burglar in Seattle, thought to have a barcode, but this one's pretty sketchy. And I've got a hit on a place called 'Manticore,' off a conspiracy theory site. Which one do you want to try?" Teli looked at the screen for a few moments, try to decide.  
  
"Well, I don't think anything from '09 will help, so not that one. I have no idea how a cat burglar would have any info, but this conspiracy theory site looks pretty whack, I mean, a Manticore is from Greek mythology so it's probably just some idiots story site. Besides, who really believes conspiracy theories anyways? So... I guess... try the Seattle one." Kat almost laughed at how Teli explained her thought process aloud as she clicked on the link.  
  
  
  
Kat scrolled down the page, skimming the stories of break-ins and sightings of this mystery cat burglar, there was only one reference to a barcode - some witness claimed to have seen one on her. There was a fuzzy picture at the end, of a girl back flipping over the top of some thug. Kat didn't think much of it. Teli didn't seem impressed either, until she did a double take on the picture.  
  
"That's her."  
  
"That's who?"  
  
"That's her, that's the woman who... who got me out, was at the adoption center with me before Jane and Dave came."  
  
"Are you sure? It's a pretty blurry picture."  
  
"Can you clear it up at all?"  
  
"I can try." Kat clicked on the picture, it enlarged. With a few clicks she was able to clear it up a little, but not much.  
  
"That's about as good as it's gonna get Te."  
  
"That's good enough. It's her."  
  
"Are ya sure?"   
  
"I'm sure."  
  
"How do you know?" Teli thought for a moment before answering; she wasn't really sure how she knew, she just did.  
  
"Well, the curls for one, but mostly because, and this is going to sound really weird Kat, but I think I've seen her do that move before."   
  
"Cool." Kat said after a moment and didn't ask for more. She clicked the window down and went back to the pervious site.  
  
"I'm curious, lets just check this Manticore story, just in case." Kat said. Teli just shrugged, as if to say 'whatever.' The conspiracy theory site came up again and Kat clicked on the Manticore story, but Kat's efforts were blocked by the request for the screen name and password.   
  
"That's really odd. Guess we can't check this one out either..." Teli didn't respond, she was looking at the background of the site. Something about the symbol being used was familiar, but Teli couldn't place it.   
  
"Well, we'll try again another time I guess." Teli finally said, now tired of sitting around. Kat sighed and leaned back in her chair.  
  
"Okay. You wanna go for a bike ride or something then?"  
  
"Actually Kat, I've gotta get home..." Teli's voice trailed off with a smile.  
  
"Oh, what for?" Kat asked, curious.  
  
"Well, I sorta got a date tonight." Teli fought a sheepish grin.  
  
"And you didn't tell me!" Kat jumped up and playfully punched Teli's shoulder as she shoed her out the door. "Have fun, and CALL ME when you get home." Teli waved over her shoulder as she head for home.  
  
  
  
****  
  
  
Tye's whole family was smiling as they made their way to the winner's circle. Tye went right to Intrepid, who had just won his first stakes race. The colt snorted, still excited, into Tye's open hand and took the offered treat. Aliana's father Tom joined them, as the horse's trainer, for the pictures.  
  
  
As Tye always did when he lead his parent's horses back into the stabling area, he looked up into the always colorful crowd. Usually his eye caught some woman's extravagant hat, the feathers from a boa, or the occasional super-fancy tux. But this time Tye's eye immediately caught that of a darkly dressed woman. The eye contact lasted for only a few seconds while the woman made a few signs with her hands. The contact broke and she was gone. Tye scanned the crowd, but could not find her.  
  
  
Aliana was at Intrepid's stall to greet him with a carrot when Tye finally got him back. She was dressed in her usual race-day sundress, which suited her nicely. Tye had long since gotten used to having to shove that observation into the back of his mind.   
  
"Hey Ali." Tye greeted her with a friendly smile.  
  
"Hey yourself." Aliana grinned back.  
  
  
  
For the next ten minutes, Aliana helped Tye un-tack the colt before they turned him over to be washed and fully cooled out.   
  
"So, your colt ran a good race." Aliana started out, playfully linking her arm through Tye's as they made their way back to the grandstand.  
  
"He sure did." Tye answered with a smile as he led the way to their seats.  
  
"I think a celebration is needed. The usual ice cream stop tonight sounds like an order to me." Aliana said, making her original question into a statement.  
  
"Yeah. But it'll have to be late, I have to meet someone in the back parking lot at 22:00 tonight." Tye replied smoothly. Aliana was confused.  
  
"What? When? Who?" Tye looked at Aliana's baffled expression and suddenly realized just what he had said. His mind flashed back to the woman in the crowd, more specifically to her hand signals. 'That must be what she meant...' Tye thought. He stopped suddenly and turned to face Aliana.  
  
"Ali, do you remember all that stuff I told you about a year ago, about me and my past...?" Tye asked in a low voice.  
  
"Yeah." Aliana answered, trying to connect.  
  
"I think I'm meeting someone who understands it all."  
  
  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
Kat and I tried to find some clues on me today. I think I learned more then she thinks we did. Found a picture of you - well, I'm pretty sure it's you, doing a back flip over some thug. Nice move, by the way. Why Seattle though? I mean, doesn't it rain WAY too much there? Not that it matters; you're probably not there any more.  
  
We also found this 'Project Manticore' story. Like the Eyes Only info, we couldn't gain access, but something about it was familiar. It took me a while, but I finally figured out what it was. See, they used this symbol as the background for the Manticore story, well, when I got home to get ready I happened to look down at my bracelet. Same repeating symbol. To be honest, that freaked me out. I'd really like to know the connection between Greek Mythology and myself. I'm sure that if I could really talk to you, you would understand this. I hope someday you'll be able to explain it all to me.  
  
Well, I've got to be going, got a date tonight. Shane. Seems like a great guy. This should be a fun night. I'll write more soon.  
  
  
-- Teli 


	10. Dinner and Dancing

Chapter 10: Dinner and Dancing  
  
  
Teli was nervously waiting just inside her door when Shane pulled up. She quickly ran out to greet him, tossing a good-bye over her shoulder to her mother, who had a knowing smile on her face. Teli hopped into the front seat and smiled at Shane.  
  
"Nice wheels." She said, forgetting the traditional 'hello.' Shane's smile widened and he reached up to pat the dashboard of the dark green Ford.  
  
"She's old, but loyal. Gets me where I need to be." Teli grinning and rolled her eyes playfully - she was feeling energetic and the butterflies in her stomach were flying at mock ten.  
  
"I see you have the typical 'guys and their cars' thought process." Teli teased with a smile. Shane pretended to be in shock as he drove away.  
  
"Me? Never..." he said with a comic's dramatic flair. Teli laughed.  
  
"So, where are we off to?" She asked.  
  
"Well, there's a pretty good band playing at one of the resorts by the lake. I've heard them a couple times; they've got a good sound. So, I thought we could get dinner on the porch and watch them play, maybe do some dancing." Shane replied.  
  
"Sounds great to me." Teli said with a grin.  
  
  
The old resort was bustling with early tourist business, there to catch some good music along with dinner. Teli and Shane were seated on the porch after only a small wait, close to the band but far enough from the dance floor to see.  
  
"Great table." Teli commented on their luck. Shane nodded his agreement. The butterflies in Teli's stomach were starting to settle from their frenzied flight and as the date progressed Teli relaxed and found herself having a great time.   
  
  
"So Shane, what's your story?" Teli asked, feeling a little bold. Shane didn't seem to mind the question in the least.  
  
"Well, not much to tell really," he started, thinking. "I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I have and older brother and a younger sister. My older brother took care of both of us - my mom was sick for a long time and my dad left when my sister was born." Shane's voice trailed off, looking at Teli's reaction. Her face show interest and some concern, so he hesitantly continued.  
  
"I left my home when I was 17, traveled here and became a ski and snowboard instructor during the winter tourist season." He finished.  
  
"And how did you come to be at our school then?" Teli asked, curious.  
  
"Well, someday I'd like to go to college and get a Public Relations degree. A bit crazy, I know, but it's a goal, right? So, with some prodding from my boss at the ski hill, I enrolled second semester this year to finish high school." Shane explained.   
  
"That's really cool Shane." Teli said, impressed. "But, in today's society, what would you do with a PR degree?" She asked.  
  
"I don't know. Try and make a difference in this messed-up world I guess." Shane said with a soft smile. Teli nodded, it was a good ambition.  
  
"So, what about you?" Shane asked, "what's your story?" Inwardly, Teli flinched at the question.  
  
"Well, it's kind of an odd story..." She began, her tone testing.  
  
"Like mine wasn't." Shane replied, obviously curious.  
  
"Well, I was adopted when I was five by my parents, Jane and Dave Stevens and they brought me here." Teli said, giving the short version and hoping he wouldn't ask for details. It didn't work.  
  
"Adopted?" Shane asked, wondering.  
  
"Yeah. To tell you the truth, I don't remember much about my old home. The common theory is that I've blocked those memories. Apparently the situation I left wasn't a good one." Teli tried to explain.  
  
"In that case, I guess it's a good thing you don't remember." Shane said, his face revealing a bit of genuine concern. Teli smiled.  
  
"I guess so." The two just looked at each other for a moment. Teli wanted to leave the subject of their pasts for a while, so she decided to take her leave for the moment.  
  
"Well, if it's alright with you, I'm going to take a quick trip to the lady's room." Teli said with a grin, rising.  
  
"Oh, I don't know if that's alright..." Shane teased.  
  
"Riiiight..." Teli said, throwing a wink at Shane as she turned and walked away.  
  
  
  
Teli laughed to herself as she walked towards the bathroom. She could feel Shane watching her as she walked away, and made sure to swing her hips just a little extra bit. Shane's electric eye contact had been making her butterflies jump around all evening. With the thought of those silvery-blues eyes fresh in her mind, Teli rounded a corner.  
  
  
Teli ran smack into the shoulder of a man about to round the corner. She felt his eyes sweep over her face quickly, but before she could look up he had turned his face away.  
  
"I'm sorry." Teli managed to quickly say. The man just nodded and walked swiftly away, giving Teli only a split second to take in his appearance before he disappeared around another corner. He was maybe 35, tall, with dark brunette locks that had been visible above the up-turned collar of a leather jacket. Teli shrugged off the odd feeling the encounter had left in her and walked on. She stopped short within ten paces.   
  
  
On the ground was a picture of her.   
  
  
Shocked, Teli picked the picture up to get a better look. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and the prickly, being-watch feeling returned. Teli whipped around, her eyes scanning. But all she saw was a shadow as it quickly jumped across her path.  
  
  
"You okay Teli? You look like you've seen a ghost." Shane asked, sounding concerned when he saw Teli's face as she walked back to their table. An image suddenly shoved its way to the front of Teli's mind - a long blue hallway and a tall, dark haired, young man marching away. 'Seen a ghost...' Shane's words echoed in Teli's mind as she pondered the image. 'No, not a ghost...' But Teli quickly blinked the image away.  
  
"I just ran into some creepy guy back there is all, I'm fine." Teli replied, still trying to shake the prickly feeling. Shane crinkled his brow as if to ask 'are you sure?'  
  
"I'm fine. Really." Teli said, forcing a smile and finally sounding confident. Shane relaxed and returned the smile.  
  
"Okay. Well, do you want to dance, you know, to get your mind off of it?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah, I'd really like that." Teli answered with a relieved smile. Shane's eyes seemed to sparkle as he stood up and offered his hand. Teli took it, glad for the welcome distraction. They walked hand-in-hand to the dance floor. The band was playing at a good up-beat tempo and the two easily stepped into it. It took only a few seconds for Teli to realize, somewhat to her surprise, that she was with a skilled dancer, and she let Shane take the lead. Soon Shane had spun Teli into the middle of the floor where they had a little more room to show off. Teli could tell Shane was impressed with how easily she kept up with him. Teli in turn was impressed that Shane could do all these fancy moves and still hold her eye contact. Except during the spins and twirls, Shane's silver-blue eyes were locked with Teli's emerald greens.   
  
  
The beat of the song changed from even, dynamic energy to a slow rhythmic flow. Shane didn't miss a step; he just spun Teli in closer, wrapping his arms around her waist. Teli's arms went around his neck as she let Shane pull her body against his. Their noses were just inches apart, their eyes remained locked.   
  
  
  
****  
  
"She's getting pretty close to this guy." A male voice spoke into a pay phone. He listened to the response.  
  
"I don't think now is a good idea." The man said. A muffled voice came out of the phone in response.  
  
"She's not showing any signs of being ready for this." Listening.  
  
"Yes, I know that. I'm just saying...What?! How do you know they might have a lead!?" The man hit the phone hard when he heard the response.  
  
"Shit." The phone was hung up with force.  
  
  
****  
As the last bars of the song slowly died away, Shane's warm grip slightly tightened around Teli's waist. One hand reached up to touch her cheek and his eyes asked a simple question. Teli rose up on her tiptoes as Shane brought his lips down to hers.   
  
  
****  
Dear Angel,  
  
Wow, today was full of interesting moments. I'll get the . . . odd parts over with first, then get to the good stuff.   
  
At dinner tonight, I got up to go to the bathroom and on the way there I ran into this guy. I know, I know, it was probably just some guy, but I got a weird feeling as he walked away. He walked too smoothly, too gracefully, too... silent. And his eyes flashed over my face before I could even react, and that's fast. I probably could've shaken that off, but then I found this picture of me on the floor. I remember the day it was taken - I was tutoring Sally and kept feeling like I was being watched. Obviously, I was right. Creepy, it's just way creepy and I don't like it.  
  
Okay, on to the fun part. :) Shane took me out tonight. We had a great time. I'm really liking this guy. He's so easy to talk to, he's funny, he's... oh gees. I'm starting to sound like Kat! I'm sure I'll get plenty of quizzing from her tomorrow. Well, you're probably curious too, so, yes, we did kiss. Once when we were dancing and again when he dropped me off. He's so much different from any other guy I've been interested in! This is so fun! I can't wait to see where this goes. Talk to ya later.  
  
-- Teli 


	11. Spill It

Chapter 11: Spill It  
  
  
"It was fun..." Teli trailed off, being purposely evasive. Kat punched Teli in the shoulder, none too gently, in protest. That evening the two girls had walked up to their favorite meeting spot on the side of the mountain - the big rock where Teli often went to write and think. Teli was shaving bark off a stick with Brian's pocketknife while Kat talked and quizzed Teli for details.   
  
"Come on Te, when I ask about a date, I want details. So spill the details. Now." Kat sat down next to Teli and shot her a 'tell me now or die' look.  
  
"Okay, okay," Teli said, mocking fear. "He took me to dinner at one of the resorts by the lake. There was a band playing and we danced after dinner for a while and then he took me home."  
  
"And..?" Kat was not about to let Teli get away with that answer.  
  
"And... we had a good time." Teli replied. She ducked before Kat could punch her again.  
  
"Well, we talked a lot about our pasts." Teli said. Kat raised her eyebrows, both surprised and questioning. Teli just shook her head. Kat"s expression seemed relieved, and then she turned back to prodding.  
  
"Go on..."  
  
"The band was really good." Teli offered. Kat rolled her eyes.  
  
"Anything else you want to tell me'?" Kat's tone was mildly curious, but her expression asked another, more direct, question. Teli felt her cheeks turn slightly pink. Kat's eyes got big with excitement as she saw the blush.  
  
"When?!"  
  
"While we were dancing and then when he dropped me off."  
  
"Aww! Like in a movie." Teli smiled and rolled her eyes slightly.  
  
"Gees, it's like pulling teeth to get details outta you!" Kat said, laughing.  
  
"Oh, whatever." Kat just grinned in response and glanced at her watch.  
  
"Oh shit! I've gotta get going, you know my mom and me staying out..." Teli nodded in agreement. She had just called up her retinal clock and noted that it was 10:48pm. Kat was supposed to be home three minutes ago.  
  
"Catch ya later Kat." Teli called, pulling out her journal as Kat climbed down and jumped off the rock.  
  
"See ya!" Kat called over her shoulder as she scurried back down the path towards home.  
  
  
  
****  
Dear Angel,  
  
It's been a pretty uneventful few days. Shane called, and we had a good talk. Kat and I have been doing our bike routes, and I guess we're all settling into a lazy summer. No new discoveries for a while now, though I still get this odd feeling of being watched every now and, but I guess I'm just being paranoid 'coz no one is ever there. Speak of the devil! I just got the odd prickle-on-the-back-of-my-mind feeling again. Grr... well, I gue  
  
  
****  
  
Teli jumped in shock as the book flew out of her hands. But before she could react, she felt a blow to the back of her head and everything went black. 


	12. Deja Vu

Chapter 12: Deja Vu  
  
  
  
When Teli awoke she was in a little room with thick metal walls. She was sitting in a corner, hands tied behind her back, ankles bound as well. The room she was in looked more like a box, 4ft by 4ft by 4ft. Actually, it was those dimensions exactly, as Teli found out when her brain scanned and calculated the distances. 'Where am I?' Teli thought, suddenly alarmed.  
  
  
Having no idea how much time had passed; Teli called up her retinal clock. She was relieved to find that it was only a half hour later. That meant she couldn't have been transported far. The oddest sense of déjà vu suddenly swept over Teli as she sat there, adjusting her night vision eyes to the low light level. She knew she had been in a box like this before, but when and why she did not know. The feeling rattled her and she broke out in a cold sweat.  
  
  
Aside from the déjà vu, which Teli couldn't seem to shake, her brain started going into what Teli could only describe as automatic pilot. In a matter of seconds she was processing information and instructions that were surfacing from her subconscious faster then she had ever thought possible.   
  
  
Following her instincts, Teli slowly twisted her wrists so her hands were palm to palm. With some careful motions, her left thumb was painlessly dislocated and she slipped her hands out of their bondage, popping her thumb back into place in the process. 'I seem to discover more useful talents right when I need them,' Teli thought, half sarcastically, as she untied the bonds around her ankles. Unable to stand, Teli crouched and tried to move around to detect any weaknesses in the walls. On impulse, she switched her vision to infrared, trying to detect any extra heat in the walls that would indicate a weakness or a stress point.   
  
  
'I know there's a weakness, there always is one... Whoa! How did I know that?! This is really bizarre. In a corner, that's where the joints are, most likely to be weak there. Where the hell am I?! Have to hit the weak point with a lot of force, best to try a kick, more power that way. Okay, whatever happened to me before I was five... I'm starting to think I really don't want to know...' Teli stream of thought continued as she meticulously scanned the walls.   
  
  
Finally, the last upper corner to be scanned showed some slight signs of heat, 'most likely due to the friction when I was put in here. Funny, that's just where it was the last time, odd, they've never repeated a spot before...' Teli stopped that thought with a shake of her head; she'd deal with disturbing thought later, now she had to concentrate on getting out. Teli made her body into a coiled spring in the opposite corner and readied for the kick. The corner broke much easier then Teli had been expecting and she came flying out of the box, landing automatically in a defensive crouch.   
  
  
She was in what looked like a typical unfinished basement. The oddest feeling that this wasn't what she'd been expecting shook her. Teli quickly scanned the room, but no one was there. A small sigh escaped her lips as she spotted some stairs in the opposite wall.   
  
  
The click of a stopwatch met Teli's ears as she burst up the stairs and through another door. Teli instinctively froze.  
  
"That was impressively unimpressive, 274." A cool, hard voice commented. Teli almost snapped to attention, catching the word 'sir' just before it left her mouth. 'Who?' Teli wondered at the number. A young man, maybe 35 by Teli's judgment, leaned casually against a regular kitchen counter. After a moment, she recognized her adversary. Even in the dark Teli could make out the innate sense of strength and power that radiated from under the leather jacket.   
  
"Are you just more confident in the dark, or were you getting a little recon on your next target when I saw you at the resort last night?" Teli shot out, briefly wondering why her attitude had flared up, then deciding that she liked it - it hid her tumbling emotions well. A slow smile spread over the dark haired man's face.  
  
"Last time you did that exercise it took you exactly 19.8 seconds, and that included leaping through 6 feet of dirt the box was buried under." He said, ignoring Teli's question.  
  
"Guess that would explain why I came flying out of there this time." Teli said cautiously. She wanted information, but was afraid of what she might find out. The man shrugged and continued on.  
  
"Took you 2 minutes 9 seconds this time." He said pointedly.   
  
"Must be outta practice." Teli shot back, defensively. 'Who is this guy?' Teli wondered frantically.   
  
"Yup. And that's why I'm here." The man dropped his casual act, becoming agitated. He shrugged off the jacket and started circling Teli on light feet. Teli's nerves were about shot and this display alarmed her even more. Yet, the whole situation still seemed strangely familiar - as if she'd run through this routine before. Slowly Teli felt her body change to a defensive stance. As he circled, she noticed that what she had thought was a kitchen, was really just a wide-open room in an un-finished house, the counter being all that had been done. What she didn't see was a potential escape.  
  
He reminded Teli of a cat circling its prey before it pounced, all graceful motions and sinewy strength. Teli pivoted along with his circles, waiting and ready. Her mind seemed to settle and understand the exercise. Then he pounced.  
  
In a frenzy of whirling motion the man came at Teli, almost to fast for her to follow. Almost. Teli whipped back, at first simply staying out of the rain of punches and kicks - blocking those that got too close. But soon, Teli began to see (or was that remember?) the logic to his moves. For that moment, Teli forgot any thought of escape and she jumped into the assault. The first few times, Teli tried an attack of her own, but she was avoided or out maneuvered with a knee in her side or a punch in her face. After a moment there was a sudden pause in the action.   
  
"What are you waiting for? You're faster then this." The man said. The pause caught Teli off guard and being flung across the room was her reward. Her body crashed into a wall and she slid down to the floor, waiting. A questioning glare on her face as she stared at the strange man.  
  
To Teli's surprise, he relaxed from his freighting stance, walked over and offered a hand to pull her up.  
  
"You got an awful funny way of being friendly." Teli said warily, ignoring the hand and standing on her own.   
  
"There are things you need to be reminded off. This is the best way." He stated.  
  
"I suppose that's your justification for locking me in that box earlier too." Teli snapped, emotions taking hold again. The man just gave her a cold stare.  
  
"You're Manticore. It was the fastest and most effective way to remind you of your training. Now it's time for you to go home." He gave her a shove towards the door.   
  
"What?" Teli snapped, suddenly confused at the turn in the conversation.  
  
"Go home." He ordered. "Oh, and I'd recommend not sleeping for a few days, you'll probably have some interesting dreams if you do." He finished. Another light shove sent Teli towards the door. The urge to be home and in her own bed abruptly washed over Teli's senses. She started to head out, but her mind stopped her.  
  
"Wait, who are you?" Teli asked sharply, turning back. The man paused, looking for an answer.  
  
"A friend." He said simply. And then, almost before her eyes, he disappeared. But Teli found herself too emotionally exhausted for the display of speed to impress. Instead, she sighed and headed out the door to jog quickly back home before she was missed. 


	13. Ticking Clock

Ticking Clock  
  
Aliana walked slowly down the Thompson's basement steps. She could hear the rhythmical pounding of fists slamming into leather and guessed that the blows that seemed to shake the whole huge house were from the kicks Tye was throwing.  
  
He was an awesome sight to see as he circled and attacked the hanging punching bag. Lean, powerful muscles rippled under his skin and his dark, sweat-drenched locks fell forward into his eyes. Aliana stood at the bottom of the stairs watching, not wanting to break the trance Tye seemed to be in as he attacked and re-attacked the bag. 'I've never seen a human move so fast.' Aliana thought with amazement.  
  
Tye finally slowed, then stopped. He picked up a towel and wiped off his sweaty face before throwing a white T-shirt on over his glistening upper body. "You don't have to stand all the way over there ya know. I won't bite." Tye said to Aliana without looking up. Aliana started a bit; she hadn't realized he had known she was there.  
  
"Sorry," Aliana mumbled as she walked closer. "You're training awfully hard these days, mind telling me why?"  
  
"I got my ass kicked, that's why." Tye replied shortly as he walked over to a bar and started doing pull-ups. He had been done with his workout, but it was easier to be doing something around Aliana. That girl was his biggest distraction, and he didn't really want her to know that.  
  
"When?" Aliana asked, not believing him in the slightest. No one who moved like she had just seen could be beaten by anyone.  
  
"That night I met with the strange little brunette. You remember, the day Intrepid won his first stakes race." Aliana nodded. She remembered going to get ice cream to celebrate. Tye had to leave early.  
  
"Even with 7 years of excelling in karate I couldn't beat her, didn't even get one shot off. It was pathetic." Tye vented. It had been bugging him ever since and this was the first chance he'd had to really talk to Aliana about it.  
  
"So, what happened after the fight?" Aliana asked, sensing the story wasn't done.  
  
"She helped me up, told me she was a friend, and said she'd be in touch." Aliana could tell there was more than that.  
  
"And what else did she say?" She asked, becoming slightly alarmed. Tye finally directly made eye contact with her. Ignoring the tiny shiver in her stomach at that, Aliana could see confusion in his eyes, which did not help to settle her own tenseness much. Finally, with a small sigh, Tye broke his eyes away, looked at the floor and answered.  
  
"She said, "You're Manticore. Fighting is the best way to remind you of that." Then she shook my hand and said "From one chimera to another. I'll be in touch." And then she disappeared." Tye glanced up again to meet Aliana's eyes. His gaze was so intense that, after a moment, Aliana had to look away; the whole situation was becoming a bit unnerving. With some hesitation she replied,  
  
"From mythology? Manticore and chimera?" She asked, trying to find something logical.  
  
"I don't know exactly what it means, but I'm starting to get an idea."  
  
****  
  
Max set her pen down and closed the leather-bound book. Logan came up behind her and started rubbing her shoulders. Max let her head fall back against him as she relaxed into the cushions of the couch.  
  
"You did the right thing sending them after those kids, Max. You gave them 11 years of a normal life, but if they're to survive they have to know who and what they are." Max sighed and nodded. His words comforted her, but didn't change the fact that she felt awful for having to pull the two 16-year-olds out of their normal lives.  
  
"I just wish I could've given them more time." She said.  
  
"I know, but their clock is about to run out of time." Logan gently reminded.  
  
****  
  
Teli had gone four days without sleeping. But on that fourth night, she was just too exhausted to do anything but drop into bed.  
  
Teli was back in the box. Her infrared vision swept quickly over the surfaces. A second later she was flying out of the box, through layers of dirt. She scrambled to her feet. She was now on the surface, deep in a forest.  
  
Gunfire and grenade explosions went off 100 yards away. Teli crawled on her belly into the underbrush. A grenade blew up not 20 feet from her. The ground vibrated, and Teli was showered with dirt and branches. She used the noise to cover her movements as she ran quickly across the forest floor.  
  
Teli caught the eye of another young soldier from across a clearing. Hand signals. 'Stay low. Move southwest. Unfriendlies to the north.' She nodded and scurried off. A branch was blown off its trunk right in front of Teli. Another bullet whizzed past her ear. She dropped and rolled. Another grenade landed in the spot she'd be standing only a moment earlier. More bullets. More mini-explosions. Teli ran, zigzagging to get away.  
  
Teli sat straight up in bed, breathing hard. Her heart was racing and her eyes were wide. It took a minute for her to still her breathing and racing heart. 'I need my journal!' Teli thought urgently, needing to write the dream down. She started to reach for it, and that was when it dawned on her that she hadn't had her journal since that strange night up on the rock. Teli's heart rate picked up again, worried that her journal was gone for good.  
  
But it was still in its usual place, under her bed where she always left it, along with her little pocketknife. 'That's odd, I would swear I didn't have it when I came home'. It then dawned on her who had picked it up and returned it. 'How did he know where I kept it?'  
  
Teli opened the book, noticing the jagged line that crossed the page where she'd last been writing when the book had been knocked away. Teli turned the page. But the space she'd been planning to write in was already taken up by another message.  
  
  
  
Dear Teli,  
  
I'm sorry for the confusion in your life, and I promise, the answers are coming. I wish I could give you more time to live a normal life, but the time is quickly coming when you'll have to face your past. Trust Zane, I sent him; he's there to help. We will meet again, soon. Until then, good luck.  
  
-- Dark Angel 


	14. Truth Seakers

Truth Seekers  
  
It had been a relatively uneventful month. Teli and Kat still went on their daily bike rides, Shane had taken Teli out almost every weekend, and Teli had begun a strict training regime. Zane, as Teli had come to know him by, was teaching her everything she would need to know; from fighting to recon, escape and evade to tactics. Only Kat knew about the training sessions that took place up on the mountain in the middle of the night. She usually chose to stay away at that time too.  
  
The memories were slowly trickling in. The brainwashing of 'Mission,' 'Duty,' and 'Discipline,' the training exercises, the staged fights and the classroom lessons. It was all coming back. Teli still didn't understand much of it – why she had been there or how she'd gotten there. Zane wasn't releasing that info yet either, so for the time being, Teli had to be satisfied with the memories, if that was possible.  
  
Zane had been shocked to learn about Teli's infrared vision and her retinal clock. It was for that reason that Teli didn't immediately explain the bracelet she always wore. Zane didn't ask. She didn't tell. It was a trainer/student situation and in those bounds they got along well enough.  
  
  
  
****  
  
Kat watched from a distance as the training session slowed down. They were always done by 1:30am and Kat had managed to sneak out that night in order to talk to Teli.  
  
The breath caught in Kat's throat as she watch Teli leap up to make an aerial strike. The two fighters moved almost too fast for Kat to follow. It ended, as was still common, with Teli on her back, defeated.  
  
"Better," Zane said as he held out his hand and pulled Teli to her feet. "You keep improving like that and it'll be me on my back pretty soon." That was high praise coming from him.  
  
"Thanks." Teli replied with a small smile, obviously pleased with his comment. He nodded and glanced at his watch as she brushed herself off.  
  
Kat took the moment of calm to whistle the usual call whistle. Teli immediately whipped around, a smile on her face. Zane said something to Teli, which was inaudible to Kat, and vanished quickly. Teli whistled back.  
  
"Hey, you made it up here tonight." Teli greeted, still slightly out of breath, as Kat climbed up the rock next to her friend.  
  
"Yeah. Mom finally went to sleep at midnight, but you know how light she sleeps, so I waited a little longer before slipping out." Teli nodded in response. A small moment of silence followed.  
  
"That was a pretty awesome move you pulled back there." Kat complimented.  
  
"Thanks." Teli said, without much enthusiasm. It was frustrating losing every night, even though she could feel herself getting stronger and faster. "It just, the more I learn how to fight, be a soldier, etc. the more I feel like I'm getting closer to having to leave here, and that's a little frightening for me." Teli explained. Kat nodded sympathetically and put an arm around her friend's shoulders.  
  
"Whatever happens Tel, you'll still be loved back here." Teli smiled sadly.  
  
"Thanks Kat." Kat gave Teli's shoulders a little squeeze and the girls spent another moment in companionable silence.  
  
"I have some new information for you Tel, if you want it." Kat finally stated. That caught Teli's attention – she was eager to learn the 'why' and 'how' of the whole situation, and Zane still wasn't talking.  
  
"I'm listening." Teli replied quickly.  
  
"Well, I found a site that has all of the old Eyes Only broadcasts recorded. Most of them are the classic 'bad cop,' 'evil mayor,' 'bring down the martial law' type things, but back in '20 they all became very focused on some place called 'Manticore.' I looked into the story a little more. Apparently, the place burned down and officials claimed it was a VA hospital."  
  
"Must've been what this Manticore place looked like on the DOD's books." Teli interjected.  
  
"That what I figured. Anyway, Eyes Only was saying this place did a lot of genetic engineering; trying to create the perfect soldier, stuff like that. Something about making animal-human hybrids." Kat stopped at that. Teli didn't say anything. She was remembering the Manticore site she and Kat had tried to get into before, and the symbol in the background. Kat took the silence as her cue to go.  
  
"Okay, well, that's all I got. I'd better get back before my mom wakes up and freaks." Kat said, standing. She flicked on her flashlight and it shone into the woods. A pair of almond eyes glowed for a brief second. Kat jumped.  
  
"It's okay Kat, that's just a bobcat." Teli half laughed and she patted her friend's shoulder as she too stood to leave.  
  
"How do you know?" Kat asked, curious.  
  
"Well, for one, I already knew it was there – night vision, remember? And two, only the feline eye has the protein in it which glows like that when light is flashed on it." Teli explained. Kat just nodded.  
  
"So that thing isn't going to track me down when I go home?" Teli laughed and gave her friend a little shove.  
  
"No goof ball, now get home before you get both of us in trouble!" Kat smiled at that and scrambled off the rock. At the bottom she turned to wave. The giggle died in her throat as the flashlight accidentally swept over Teli's face.  
  
"What is it Kat?" Teli asked, blinking the light spots away and seeing the sudden change in expression.  
  
"Um, Te, I don't know how to tell you this but… well, your eyes just flashed like that bobcat's did."  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
Human-feline hybrid huh? Should've guessed. I guess that explains quite a bit. Question is, why? Kat was talking about this Manticore place, creating the perfect soldier and all. I guess that's where all the memories of training and fighting come from. Wonder where I'd be today if you hadn't gotten me out. You know what, it's time I pulled out my last little trick and figured this bitch out. The bracelet is coming off. Tonight. I'll let ya know what I find.  
  
-- Teli  
  
****  
  
"Are you sure this is a good idea Tye?" Aliana asked with concern as Tye fiddled with the computer hook-up and internet lines. Tye had called her an hour ago, asking if she would come help with a project. Now that she knew his plans, she wasn't too sure about the whole situation. But Tye was being his usual self and was determined to see his plan through.  
  
"It's the only way to find some real answers." Tye answered quickly as he sat down at his computer desk and switched on the monitor. 


	15. Inside

Inside  
  
"Kat, I need you, can you come over now?" Teli asked quickly into the phone. Kat could hear the strain in Teli's voice.  
  
"Yeah, I'll be over in ten." She replied.  
  
"Thanks." Teli hung up quickly. Rummaging around in her dad's workshop, she finally found a splitter and the extra Internet cable she needed. Running back up to her room, Teli checking in on Brian, who was fast asleep, and on her parents, who were about to turn their TV off to fall asleep as well.  
  
"Hey, is it okay if Kat stays over?" Teli asked quietly from her place by the door.  
  
"Sure, Teli. Just don't stay up too late." Came the groggy reply.  
  
"Thanks Mom." Teli shut their bedroom door quietly and hurried down the hall to her own room. Once there, she unplugged her computer's cable hookup and plugged the splitter into the wall. The original cable and the extra she had found were then plugged in. Teli heard Molly's low bark, and then excited prancing when she realized it was Kat. Teli took a deep breath and sat down at the computer.  
  
"Hey Teli." Kat said as she entered Teli's room, a little breathless from her quick run over.  
  
"Hey." Teli answered, tension in her voice.  
  
"So, what's up?" Kat asked, noticing the new cable arrangement.  
  
"We're hacking into Manticore's computer network to find some real answers. Only, we're doing it my way. This is the last of my little tricks, at least, that I know of, and it's time to pull it off." Teli said with conviction.  
  
"Have you done this before?" Kat asked.  
  
"A couple times, just to experiment. But we're pretty much going to be making it up as we go." Teli replied, turning to the computer. Kat reached over instinctively and shut the door.  
  
"Okay, so I figure all the Manticore computers are connected through a network, but of course they wouldn't have an actual web site. So, we need to find the door into that network another way." Teli explained as she finished setting up the area.  
  
"And how do you suggest we do that?" Kat asked, curious but unconvinced.  
  
"Well, from what Zane has said, Manticore is government-funded, and since they were making soldiers it would probably be a part of the Department of Defense, which would make sense when you add that to what we learned from the old Eyes Only hacks."  
  
"You expect us to just hack into the DOD?" Kat asked, shocked.  
  
"Well, not 'just'. I'm not exactly your conventional hacker. My method makes it a lot easier for me to hack into places than a regular person. We have to find the connection to the Manticore network through the DOD, which, *does* have a web site." Teli explained, trying to make it sound simpler then it she knew it would be, for both herself and Kat.  
  
"Okay…" Kat trailed off, still not totally following.  
  
"If you can find the DOD's site, I can take the rest of it from there." Teli asked.  
  
"Okay, I can do that." Still not sure what Teli had in mind, Kat took Teli's place in front of the computer. After just a few moments, in which Teli paced and tried to relax, she completed the search and found the Department of Defense public home page. It was basically nothing but a bunch of post-depression propaganda.  
  
"Okay, so, from there, there should be a way into their network, and then into the Manticore network," Teli stated, scanning the site.  
  
"You really know how to do this?" Kat asked.  
  
"I was trained to at an early age, I'm hoping it will come to me as I go along. I don't remember doing anything with this tight security, though," she answered. Kat just nodded. Teli sat in her spot in front of the computer, took a deep breath, and removed the silver bracelet. She didn't see Kat's eyes get huge at what she saw underneath. Teli quickly reached over, grabbed the extra cable and plugged it into the outlet that was implanted in her wrist. Teli looked at Kat, the slightest hint of nervousness in her eyes.  
  
"Here we go." Teli said quietly. Kat nodded and watched Teli close her eyes.  
  
Once Teli shut her eyes, she was in effect inside her computer. Her mind reached out to 'see' the DOD page. Once there, all Teli really had to do was step through it. The whole 'public information' site was really just a front, a cover to distract hackers from where the real information was. Similar to a real door, Teli could simply walk through, and enter the place that had the path to where she needed to go. The trick to getting around the DOD site was not to actually enter it, just to find where she needed to go and pass through that.  
  
Once through, Teli found herself in a circular room, with many different doors. Even though she'd been inside the Internet before, the feeling of being in a 3D place still surprised her. She knew, from Kat's view, it was still 2D, and nothing like what Teli was seeing in her mind. Some doors led off to the other parts of the site, but Teli chose the door she knew would lead her back to the DOD's real network, the place where she could find the way to Manticore.  
  
Kat placed herself between Teli and the door, just in case someone tried to come in, and watched in amazement as the computer screen changed. The original image disappeared into a page of code that meant nothing to her, with more commands flitting across the screen by the second.  
  
The screen in front of Kat froze. Everything was still in code, but a little caution box popped up that read "Access Blocked." Kat tried reaching over Teli's shoulder to move the mouse or type something in, but the computer didn't seem to be responding to anything she did. Teli continued to sit there, eyes closed, back as stiff as a board.  
  
Teli's mind had been programmed to interpret firewalls as images, like everything else she encountered in the computer. And in the case of firewalls, those images had every implied quality of the name. Teli passed from the orderly room in the DOD site to meet a blazing wall just the other side of the door. In her mind, Teli could even feel the heat blocking her from the sensitive information she was after. She paused for a split second to think of how to proceed. It looked like fire, not anything solid, which meant she could pass through. She had a little bit of space to run. Looking at the firewall, Teli could feel how the flames formed their resistance. Her mind was sending commands, decoding pieces of information just ahead of where she was to keep her path through the wall clear. When she felt the timing dome just right, she sped straight at the wall, throwing herself down at the last second as she used her momentum to roll quickly through the blaze. The heat suddenly disappeared and the blinding light went with it. Teli stood. There were several doors in front of her labeled as the different directories of the supposedly secure DOD network she had just broken into. Teli reached out, opening a door labeled 'Black Ops.'  
  
Through that link, Teli's corporeal form was faced with another series of doors. Again, Teli went on instinct and crossed through 'Research.' Finally, after passing various other passages, Teli found the connection to the Manticore network. It was a little door, tucked away around a corner. Teli entered.  
  
Kat started as the screen flashed off the now-standard page of coding to a site of dark blue, gray and black. The huge feline symbol seemed to jump out at Kat. The screen changed again, just as quickly as before. All the colors and the emblem dissolved back into the codes, and Kat resigned herself to more waiting.  
  
Teli stepped into the dark blue mist that shrouded the Manticore site to her mind's eye. Her first instinct was to duck, and duck she did. A huge gray paw swung at her, barely missing. The gleaming red eyes of an enormous feline creature glared at her. After the one swipe caused Teli to back away, it took up residence across her path, never taking its eyes off her. Teli recognized this as a variation on the normal password program, and knew that this lion-creature wanted identification. She tried to just walk by, since that sometimes worked for her. It didn't here. Just as the paw raised again, Teli suddenly found the words she needed surfacing from somewhere in her mind. She grabbed at the memory, something she'd overheard as a young soldier.  
  
'Madam X, password 331450074656.' Teli stated with authority. The paw came down and the dark blue mist lifted. Teli once again found herself in a circular room with many doors.  
  
Teli looked around, trying to decide which one to go through next. One read "X Series," and another "Personnel." There were a lot more choices than she expected. A door marked "Specialized Series" caught Teli's eye. Something told her to go there. Teli's mind reached out and opened the door. Another password was asked for, but this time Teli was able to simply walk through it, as it lacked the lion-like guardian. Once inside, she glanced around quickly, noting that now there were pictures accompanying the labels on the doors.  
  
Teli turned slowly around the room, searching for some feeling that would show her the right door. Finally, when she had turned almost 360 degrees, she saw a room with "X-9" written on it, and a picture of two little kids, which she entered.  
  
The coded screen changed to a regular data file page. Kat immediately realized that this was the directory Teli had been looking for. She slipped in the blank CD she had ready and started downloading the information. Her fingers raced over the again-responsive keys and she hoped Teli would come back out of there soon.  
  
Teli could feel Kat downloading the information, but she continued to look around a little. She opened a 'history' file.  
  
"After much debate, it was decided that the X-9 series would be placed under the "Specialized Soldiers" classification instead of the usual "X Series." While their genes are from the X5 line, they have been further enhanced and technologically modified."  
  
Somebody else was downloading the same files. Kat didn't know who or where, but that's what the screen was telling her. She needed to get Teli out of there. She shook her. Nothing. She talked to her. Again nothing. Teli was too deeply immersed inside the site to hear Kat.  
  
Teli backed out of the "Specialized Soldiers" file to investigate this X5 lead she'd just read. When Teli opened the "X Series" door she had the strangest feeling that someone else was in there too, like she was. It was both familiar and scary, like something pressing on her mind. But after a quick investigation, Teli could find nothing out of the ordinary, so she continued.  
  
Once through the X5 door Teli realized that there were two categories: AWOL and Active. Teli wondered how she could let Kat know to download these files too. Teli pushed her mind through the computer, trying to find the download command herself. Kat must've seen something on the screen change because after a moment Teli could feel the files going onto the disk. It was time for her to leave. She retraced her steps back through the doors she had come through as quickly as possible; the process of getting out was much faster than going in. Once back to the original DOD page, Teli pulled her mind away from the connection. Just before she pulled all the way out, Teli felt again, for the briefest moment, a familiar presence, but she was already disconnected and coming back into her real mind. It took a moment to adjust, but she slowly opened her eyes.  
  
Kat's worried face peered into Teli's.  
  
"You okay?" Kat asked, concerned.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine. Did you get all the stuff downloaded?" Teli asked as she disconnected herself from the cable and snapped her bracelet back on.  
  
"All there." Kat answered.  
  
"Thanks." Teli smiled in appreciation, rubbing her temples.  
  
"Teli, someone else was in there, downloading the same files as you." Kat said in a rush, not sure how else to break it to her. A flash of alarm went through Teli, but then she remembered the familiarity of the presence.  
  
"Yeah, I felt something, but it was familiar, in a…friendly way, if that makes any sense." Teli said, still wondering. Kat wrinkled her brow.  
  
"I guess it does, but you scared me – I couldn't get you to come back so I could tell you someone else was there." Kat looked genuinely scared.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Kat, I still don't have much control over this aspect of me quite yet. I should have warned you better." Teli tried to explain and reassure at that same time. Kat nodded, calming a bit. She took over the computer once again to get her mind off the weirdness of it all. She disconnected totally from the Internet and opened the CD files. Teli was surprised at how much different it looked from this viewpoint. Kat got out of the computer chair and plopped down on the bed, exhausted by the strenuous pacing she'd done. Teli dove right into reading the files.  
  
A few hours later, Kat was sleeping quietly and Teli was just finishing up a paragraph on her genealogy. She glanced at the clock. 2:37 AM. 'One more paragraph' Teli thought. That paragraph contained a little surprise. After staring in shock for a while, Teli unfocused on the page and to no one in particular whispered into the air.  
  
"I have a brother."  
  
****  
  
Tye glanced away from his computer for a moment. Aliana had curled up on the big plush chair in his room and was now fast sleep. Tye smiled in her direction, noticing the cute little expression she had on her face while she slept. He was going to have to wake her up so she could sneak back home in a while, since she technically wasn't allowed to be here. Still, the rules had never applied to Aliana, and she had wanted to help him however she could. Tye knew that the events of the night had probably been a lot for her to take in. Not that she couldn't handle it, but really, how often does one see another person mentally enter the Internet? He had learned a lot though. It had been one hell of a trip, bypassing passwords and getting through the damn firewall. But it had been worth it. He had all the information he needed- well, all he hoped he needed. There had only been one minor point of distress; someone else had been in that site too. Someone else had downloaded the same files. The odd part about it was how familiar that other presence had been, even if he had only felt it for a few brief moments.  
  
Tye called up his retinal clock. 2:37 AM. 'One more paragraph.' He thought to himself. He had been poring over the files he and Aliana had downloaded for the past few hours. After a moment, once his eyes had scanned the paragraph several times, disbelievingly, he lifted his eyes off the screen and whispered to himself, in disbelief,  
  
"I have a sister." 


	16. Downtime

The sun was barely peeking out over the low Arizona hills. The new rays glinted in Tye's eyes as he walked from the training barn to the exercise track. He hadn't slept at all the night before; the information he had learned from his trip through the Internet world had taken a while to sink in. But now it was time to work, if do what he loved best about living on a training farm counted as work.  
  
Intrepid nudged Tye playfully as they walked onto the exercise track. At 6'2" Tye was much too tall to race Intrepid in his actually races, but he could ride him at home. Today, with his next race in a week, Intrepid was doing a clocked, quarter mile breeze – 400 meters of flying down the track as fast as the thoroughbred could run.  
  
Tom, the farm's head trainer, met Tye and Intrepid at the gate and held Intrepid while Tye hopped into the saddle. Intrepid pranced underneath him; the colt always seemed to know when it was a breeze day.  
  
"He looks fresh this morning." Tom commented, running his trained eye over the excited colt. Tye nodded in response and laid a soothing hand on the colt's neck.  
  
"He's doing a quarter mile breeze today?" Tye asked, double- checking. Tom nodded.  
  
"Give him a good warm-up, ease into nice gallop for an 800, when you hit that last marker, let him out." Tye nodded and glanced out onto the track. Two other horses were pulling up, just finishing up.  
  
"Aliana will be out shortly," Tom said quickly. "She getting on that spunky two-year-old your parents bought at the auction last month. We're going to see what the colt's got in him." Tom explained. Tye nodded, surprised Aliana was riding; she'd had a bit of a long night, but that was Aliana for you.  
  
"Okay, lets see what this one's got in him today." Tye turned the colt and headed out onto the track. Galloping thoroughbreds was the one place where Tye could let everything go. Forget the questions, forget the frustration, forget the worries. Forget it all. On the track he was free.  
  
Intrepid was feeling fresh that morning. His steps were light and he floated through his warm-up, obviously eager to run. That was the great part about riding these horses; they loved to run like the wind. Tye watched the rail for his signal. Tom held up his stopwatch and gestured towards Tye. At the next marker, he let Intrepid into an easy gallop. The colt's long strides ate up the track. The last marker was approaching quickly. Just as they hit it, Tye leaned forward and squeezed with his legs. That was all the encouragement Intrepid needed. The colt shifted into high gear and flew down the track. The wind whipped Intrepid's mane into Tye's face as Tye squinted, watching for the 400-meter marker, loving the sensation of flying as the colt powered them down the track.  
  
They hit the marker and Tye stood in the stirrups and loosened the reins. Intrepid immediately dropped down to a slow gallop, then an easy canter, and finally a smooth trot. His long strides were still springing – it was obvious the colt could've done another 400 easily. They trotted another lap around the track before Tye pulled him up in front of Tom, who held up the stopwatch for Tye to see. Tye read the time and grinned.  
  
"Excellent," Tom said, looking at the stopwatch again. "This one will definitely be ready for his next stakes race next week." Tye, still grinning, reached down and patted Intrepid's neck. The colt was still prancing, obviously pleased with himself. "Give him another lap to cool out, then I need you to hop on that little bay, Finnegan, for me, he needs a breeze today as well." Tye nodded, absorbing his instructions and turning Intrepid back to the track for his cool down.  
  
About halfway around the track, Aliana came trotting up. She was riding the new two-year-old, getting him used to the track and his new surroundings. She pulled up next to Tye and Intrepid, a grin on her face. She was in her element; she loved training the new ones and helping them reach their potential.  
  
"Hey!" She said brightly. Tye looked over and smiled at her.  
  
"Hey yourself." He said, glancing from her to the new horse. "How's this one feel today?" He asked, curious.  
  
"He's full of two-year-old energy. He's already tried to buck me off twice." Aliana replied with a laugh, her amusement with the young horse ringing in her voice. Tye frowned a little.  
  
"You know Aliana, someday you're going to find a horse that *can* get you off when it wants too." Tye said. He'd seen her ride plenty of naughty horses, and they never got her off, but that didn't mean it wouldn't happen. Aliana just grinned at him and shrugged.  
  
"Aliana! That colt needs to be working! Get him going!" Tom yelled. Tye often wondered if riding for your father made things more difficult. He was willing to bet they did. Aliana looked at Tye, a sheepish look on her face. Tye almost laughed.  
  
"Have a good ride." He told her.  
  
"Yup. See ya." She replied as she and the new colt trotted away. Tye turned Intrepid off the track and hopped lightly to the ground.  
  
"You did good, boy." He told the colt as they walked back to that barn. Tye glanced at the schedule posted in the barn aisle; he had three more horses to ride that morning, and it was only 6:30.  
  
****  
  
"You ready?" Shane asked with a grin.  
  
"I'm game." Teli replied, grinning back. Shane was taking her somewhere, but he wasn't telling where. All Teli knew was that they were biking somewhere, and Shane was wearing a backpack that looked rather heavy.  
  
"Let's go then." Shane replied with a glance back at Teli before he pushed off, leading Teli onto a trail that wound its way up the mountainside. It was late in the morning, and the sun shone down through the mid-summer leaves, warming Teli's skin. Their mountain bikes gripped the dirt and gravel path, making the tight turns and little dips and rises in the path flow past smoothly. Teli kept her eye on Shane as he led the way, watching for any sign that he was getting tired from their long ride. As if he had just read her mind, Shane slowed and stopped on a sharply uphill portion of the trail.  
  
"I think I'm going to walk up this part." Shane said with a smile, pausing a moment to catch his breath. Teli hopped off her bike as well.  
  
"Yeah, this part is pretty steep." She replied, walking her bike up so she stood parallel with Shane.  
  
"We've got about another mile and half to go, mostly uphill," Shane told her. "You gonna be able to make it?" He asked, turning towards Teli, a teasing, playful glint in his eyes.  
  
"Oh, I'm pretty sure I'll be alright." Teli replied, matching his tone. She had been fine so far, no sign of tiredness – but that was to be expected. This hit Teli rather suddenly, the thought that Shane really had no idea what she was. Sure, he knew the girl he'd met at the party a month ago, but internally she had changed, adapted to all the new information that had been flung her way. Anger flared up in her suddenly, towards whoever or whatever Manticore was, and towards Zane for showing her the truth. 'What am I supposed to tell Shane?' Teli wondered. '"Oh, by the way, I was created in a lab by a secret government agency to be a super soldier"? I'm he'd be just thrilled to hear that…' Teli thought bitterly. 'Why did this happen to me? What did I ever do?'  
  
"Teli?" Shane's voice broke into Teli's thoughts. Teli shook her head briefly and looked up. "You okay Teli?" Shane asked, looking a little concerned.  
  
"Yeah. Yeah, sorry. Just got a little too into some thoughts I guess." Teli replied quickly, and then adding, "What were you saying?" Effectively not giving Shane a chance to ask about her thoughts.  
  
"Oh, I was just going see if you were ready to bike again, the path has evened out a bit." Shane said, giving Teli a little smile as he stopped and prepared to get back on his bike. Teli smiled back, pushing her bitter thoughts away.  
  
"Sounds like a plan." She replied, following his lead and hopping onto the bike.  
  
It took them another ten minutes of rather slow up-hill biking to get to the spot Shane wanted to find. It high up on the mountainside where the trees started to thin out. There was a flat spot, clear of trees, where tall grass blew in the slight breeze and summer flowers poked out of the waving stalks. Teli turned to take in the view from this high up. Lake Tahoe glittered bluish-green, a few ripples on its mostly-glassy surface. The Sierras stretched their towering, snowcapped peaks off into the horizon as the sun shone brightly, giving everything a lively glow. Shane stepped up to Teli, put his arm around her waist, and looked out at the view himself.  
  
"It's really beautiful up here." Teli said quietly. Shane smiled softly and looked down at Teli.  
  
"You're the beauty up here." Shane replied softly. Teli smiled up into Shane's eyes for a moment before a slight giggle escaped her lips.  
  
"Oh wow, why do I suddenly feel like I'm in a movie?" Teli asked, glancing down at her shoes with a little laugh.  
  
"That last line was a little corny, wasn't it?" Shane asked, turning slightly red.  
  
"Oh, no. No, no, it wasn't that, it was just…" Teli tried to explain. Shane gave her a look and Teli stopped talking.  
  
"Come on, I still have to redeem myself." Shane said with a grin, pulling Teli's hand and walking back towards where they'd left the bikes and Shane's backpack.  
  
He had packed a small picnic lunch, which they ate on a soft woven blanket. The hour passed by rather quickly.  
  
"See that open area over there?" Shane asked, indication to a bare patch on a mountain opposite of where they were. Teli nodded. "That's where I teach snowboarding in the winter, during the tourist rush." Shane explained. Teli used her vision to look closer; she could see off-season remnants of chair lifts.  
  
"Remind me how you decide to teach snowboarding again?" Teli asked, remember the small part of the story Shane had told her.  
  
"Well, snowboarding isn't exactly something we have much in New Mexico, but it's always something I've wanted to try." Shane started. Teli watching his expression from explaining to sifting through old memories. "So, when I was 17, I left home and was determined to go someplace where I could experience a little …" he broke off, searching for the right words. "Adventure." He finished with a smile, glancing quickly at Teli, then back at their scenic view. "When I finally got here, just on a random urge, I applied to be a ski/snowboard instructor, even though I had no idea what I was doing." Shane said with a laugh.  
  
"So, then, how did you end up with the job?" Teli asked, now quite curious. Shane laughed again.  
  
"Well, the man who is now my boss turned out to be a really cool guy. He saw I needed a job, so, he put me on a snowboard and sent me down the hill." Shane glanced again at Teli, a small grin on his face. "I only made it halfway down." Teli laughed; picturing an uncoordinated Shane was rather amusing.  
  
"Obviously you figured it all out though." Teli replied, more questioning then stating. Shane nodded.  
  
"Yup, I got sick of landing on my butt every ten seconds pretty quickly. But I didn't want to quit, so, I just… learned." Shane answered, finishing the story.  
  
"I guess that goes to show you can do anything once you put your mind to it." Teli comment, appraisingly. Shane raised an eyebrow and nodded in a 'yeah, I guess' manner and then glanced down at his watch.  
  
"Well Teli, we'd probably better get going, we've got a long bike ride down to come." Shane said, his tone indicating that he really didn't want to leave. Teli nodded her agreement, both with the statement and with the sentiment of not wanting to leave. Up here she was almost in another world. She could be herself, or rather, be who she wanted to be, instead of being what she was supposed to be.  
  
They both stood up and brushed themselves free of the few leaves and dust particles that had drifted their way. Shane folded the blanket while Teli packed away what little was left of their lunch.  
  
When Teli picked up her bike, she glanced back at the incredible view over the lake with a little sigh.  
  
"Thanks for bringing me up here, Shane." She said softly. Shane stepped up to her and reached up to touch her cheek.  
  
"We'll have to come back again sometime." He replied softly. Teli wondered briefly when and if that time would come. But her thoughts were cut short when Shane leaned towards her and pressed his lips to hers. When they finally pulled apart, Teli smiled glowingly at Shane as he hopped onto his bike. He turned and winked once over his shoulder before they headed off back down the mountain.  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
Today was one of those wonderful days when everything that's been battling for your mind's attention simply disappear. Well, perhaps they're just momentarily shoved away, but either way, it was a nice mental vacation. I biked up to this really beautiful picnic spot with Shane today, and we spent most of the afternoon together, just talking and being ourselves. Well, mostly.  
  
It never used to bother me very much that I had these little differences from other people. Really, it didn't. Life was simple; keep what I know to myself, and just live. Now…now I know why I am what I am. Or, at least, I think I know. And it's just made everything harder. Now I have to ask WHY? Why was I created? Why am I here now? And why did this have to happen to me? I know, that's… a bit of a selfish point of view, but I'm allowed to question! I've never really questioned and now all this new information is being thrown at me faster then I can absorb it. In a way I wish I'd never started looking for answers, never thought to realize I was different. But now I have no choice.  
  
I know I can't keep living this life forever. If I could, Zane wouldn't be here, I wouldn't be training every day like I am. So now I ask, what's next? And where do I go from here?  
  
--Teli 


	17. A Lead

Director Raigan leaned back in her chair and surveyed her new office. New company, new name, new office; same mission. A small grin flickered over her face, 'and they all think I'm dead…' she mused 'well, I was tired of being Elizabeth Renfro anyway.' Now all she needed was a good lead. Leads had been lacking recently, but Raigan knew she would find them – her two special soldiers. It was just a matter of time.  
  
"Director Raigan, some new information has just come in, ma'am." The young soldier snapped a smart salute as he gave the news.  
  
"What is it?" Raigan asked, perhaps a bit sharply. She was tired of the dead-end leads White was always feeding her.  
  
"Ma'am, records show someone named 'Elizabeth Renfro' logged into the Manticore network two days ago at 23:00 and stay on until 23:32." This definitely caught her attention. Raigan's chair shot back and spun as she jumped out of it.  
  
"The Manticore network? I thought those computers were destroyed." Raigan snapped, leaning on her desk towards the young soldier.  
  
"The Department of Defense went in and made sure the information was not lost after the '20 fire, ma'am. However, besides some maintenance people from the DOD, no one has logged into it for years." Raigan stared at her desktop for a moment, letting the information soak in. 'I should've known that network would be preserved. Should've known that years ago.' She could kick herself for not thinking of that before. Then the other piece of information sunk in.  
  
"Who did you say was logged in soldier?" Raigan snapped. A flicker of amusement flashed in the soldier's eyes.  
  
"Elizabeth Renfro, ma'am. For approximately 32 minutes." He answered without expression.  
  
"Using which login path?" the director asked cautiously.  
  
"Unknown ma'am. All we know is that 'Elizabeth Renfro' logged in using a twelve digit password." Her eyes widened in shock and she sought her chair. The soldier did not understand the significance of this, but Raigan did.  
  
"Bring me the file. Dismissed." She waved her hand and soldier promptly disappeared. Raigan could not believe her luck. Not only had she found the Manticore network intact, she also had the lead she'd been looking for the past 11 years. The only twelve-digit password she had ever used was for a login site that only two soldiers in the world could access. A sly grin spread over her face as she turned on her computer. There was a lot of work to be done.  
  
  
  
****  
  
Max sank heavily down into Logan's couch. She clenched her hands together, trying to make the shaking stop. 'Perfect DNA, my *ss,' Max thought, 'why the hell do I still get seizures…?' Thinking back, it had been a while, but this one was feeling like it could get bad. 'Where is Logan…?' Max wondered briefly. The elevator door opened as if to answer her.  
  
"Max?" Logan asked, concerned when he saw her uncharacteristically lying down. He rushed to her and knelt beside her head.  
  
"Hey Logan." Max tried to smile. The shaking was getting worse. "Looks like I'm gonna hit a rough spot, thought I'd come here." Logan brushed her hair from her face and kissed her cheek.  
  
"What do you need Max?" Logan asked gently. Max had already taken her pills, now she just had to wait for them to take effect.  
  
"Just stay with me." Max whispered as the shaking increased. Logan settled down by the couch, gripping her hand.  
  
"I'm right here." He whispered.  
  
As always with the seizures came the dreams and flashbacks: Glass shattered, 'Tinga no!' The cold, damp body was limp and lifeless in her arms. 'I'm sorry.'  
  
The scene switched: 'State your designation.' 'My name's Max!' 'State your designation.' 'Kiss my transgenic ass!' 'How long can an X5 live without food or water?' 'Six days.' 'Call me in a week.'  
  
'State your designation.' 'X5-452!' 'You don't fool me, I know you're just playing along.'  
  
'Let me show you something….' 'You destroy everyone you love… your brother Zack, your sister Tinga…'  
  
'All that's left of your sister, X5-656….' The image of two test tubes haunted her mind. 'We were testing her DNA. Found some pretty amazing things in there….' 'These two test tubes will soon be the finest soldiers Manticore will ever produce…'  
  
'Relax big fella.' 'You relax, little fella.' 'Whoa, you can talk.' 'To bad this isn't a room with a view.' 'Max and Joshua, outside, that's the plan.'  
  
  
  
Max jumped awake. Logan was still clutching her hand. The seizing subsided a bit, but Max could feel it was only a moment of calm. Logan looked worried so Max tried to smile at him.  
  
"I'll be alright Logan." Max squeezed his hand weakly. Logan just nodded, his eyes still worried. On impulse, Logan propped Max up and sat down behind her. She leaned back against his chest and smiled as his arms came up to wrap tightly around her.  
  
"It's almost over…' Her voice trailed off, as again she was lost in flashbacks.  
  
'Max, I've found them!' 'Where?' 'They've been being trained in the old Gillette facility, along with a few others who were re-captured.' 'Under whose command?' 'A Director Elaine Raigan.'  
  
'Fall in.' The two kids jumped out of their cots to fall in line. 'There's been a change in your mission status--extreme and unforeseen. You've been betrayed by your own command. What do you do?' 'Redeploy.' 'Correct. How?' 'Unknown, ma'am. We have no training with regard to that circumstance.' 'Do you know what that means?' 'No, ma'am.' 'All your training goes out the window.' 'Yes, ma'am.' 'Starting with your blind obedience to Manticore and all it represents.' 'Yes, ma'am.' 'Do you understand?' The two little expressionless faces stared up at her, 'Yes ma'am.' 'Alright then, follow me.'  
  
  
  
Max's eyes opened slowly. The seizing had stopped. The flashbacks were gone. She could breath easy again. Logan felt her sigh and squeezed her tight. Max snuggled closer to him in response as he kissed the top of her head. Eventually they both drifted off to sleep, Max in Logan's arms, no longer haunted by the ghosts of her past.  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
You're X5-452. And Zane is X5-205. Your unit leader was X5-599, Zack – but he died so you could have his heart. Two others died too, X5- 493, Ben, and X5-656, Tinga. They were doing DNA research on her, something about being able to pass her traits on to her offspring. Some of the files on her were deleted, I wonder why…?  
  
Pretty amazing things can be found out once you get inside the network, don't you think? See, I have this implant… it allows me to plug a phone line or an Internet cable into an outlet in my wrist. From there I can connect and essentially become part of the Internet. Pretty crazy, don't you think? Yeah, me too. But, it comes in handy when I need to get info in a flash.  
  
My biggest piece of news – I have a brother! My heart just about leaped out of my chest when I read that. Now I know I am not totally alone in this world – there is someone out there like me. I just have to find him. The memories make sense now – we were twinned, trained together until you got us out. Funny, I always assumed I was seeing myself in the memories, now I know it was him. I do wonder though, why there were only two of us. All the other X generations had 30 or so to a unit! But whatever file had that information must have been deleted. All I know is that we're from the X5 line – whatever that means.  
  
Zane is a slave driver these days. Training, training, training. I finally won a match last night! I was so proud of myself! Though, now that he knows I'm to that point, I get the feeling he is just going to get tougher. Wish me luck,  
  
-- Teli 


	18. Training Days

Training Days  
  
"Again." Zane's crisp voice rung through the valley for what seemed the hundredth time. Teli's frozen form burst into motion. Jab, jab, upper cut, high kick, jab, elbow, back kick, high jump, spin, jab, jab, side kick, high jump kick, land, freeze.  
  
"Again." His tone was almost bored. Jab, jab, upper cut, high kick… Teli flew through the motions – fast, accurate, deadly.  
  
"What are you waiting for? You faster then this. Again." The only reply was the tiniest flash of a glare in Teli's eyes. Her body spun through the motions again. Even to Zane's trained eye her motions were blurred. Faster, sharper, harder. Teli landed again, frozen, waiting. Her blank, emotionless eyes focused on nothing.  
  
Zane studied the statue of a girl in front of him. Underneath those cold eyes he knew her thoughts wandered, her emotions tumbled, and her heart raced. He knew because he'd been there.  
  
"At ease." Zane finally said. Teli slowly relaxed and stood upright. The cold, emotionless eyes were now gone – replaced with the pleased expression of a girl who knew she'd done well. Zane nodded after a moment, sending Teli bursting down the mountainside to visit with Kat and Shane, knowing that the next day would bring more training.  
  
****  
  
"…. 497, 498, 499, 500." Tye immediately flipped over from the crunches and started doing pushups. Jondy circled like a professional athletic trainer, stopwatch in hand. Four and a half minutes later Tye was on the hip slide, pushing a mere thousand as if it were twenty. With every ripple of muscle Tye could feel himself growing stronger and faster. Every practice the power within him grew.  
  
"Okay Tye. You're doing a two hour run today, no need to push too hard." Jondy stated as she slipped another stopwatch around Tye's neck. "When you get back we'll do a quick cool-down and be done for the day." Tye nodded at her words and took off on his usual route.  
  
Aliana joined him in his jog about an hour into it. She often ran with him for a half hour or so during these runs. Though Tye had to slow up a bit, he enjoyed the company. That day, as Aliana jogged up, a playful urge struck Tye. He grinned and quickly stole the visor right off Aliana's head and dashed off, his smirk daring her to try and get it back. Aliana laughed and took off after him, calling out in a voice that threatened things to come if he didn't give it back.  
  
****  
  
Teli surveyed the obstacle course set in front of her for a moment. Her skeptical eye caused a twinge of doubt to pinch her stomach. But Teli shoved that away, letting the determined soldier back out to play.  
  
The early morning air was crisp and sweet so high up in the mountains. Teli's breath, though it was now newly August, formed a small puff in front of her nose as she breathed. Zane's soft steps approached from behind and Teli heard the click of the stopwatch.  
  
In seconds Teli was climbing her way up the 30-foot-high rock face. Her feet and hands slipped in the loose gravel, denying her much hold. Rock cut through the thick cloth of Teli's gloves and a small trickle of blood ran down her wrist. But Teli pushed on, not even noticing the injury.  
  
"Faster, Teli!" Zane's voice floated upwards, now seeming miles away. Teli pressed herself harder, using her training and skill to propel herself up the rock face unaided. Once at the top, Teli found herself looking over the treetops to the valley below. But only a second could she waste on sightseeing; the clock was still ticking. The way down was waiting.  
  
Teli set off across the tightrope Zane had so carefully set up, putting all her concentration into her balance on the thin line. She made it quickly to the middle, but there, Zane had a little surprise for her. The rope had been frayed and at that instant snapped under her weight. For the briefest second Teli thought she would fall, but her quick reflexes grabbed a hold of the broken rope before it could fall away. Teli scrambled to pull herself up the rope as it swung down, trying to regain some control. Below, Zane almost cringed just before Teli swung into a large tree trunk. With a quick twist, Teli managed to avoid the tree, causing the rope to wrap around it's trunk, and allowing Teli to flip away, twisting in midair to land safely on the ground.  
  
"Keep moving soldier!" Zane barked sharply. Teli flew into action, running quickly to the next part of the obstacle course.  
  
****  
  
Through the clear green-blue waters Tye could see her, stopwatch in hand, pacing the lengths of the pool. He didn't stop, didn't breath, didn't even slow his pace. Stroke, stroke, flip, push off, glide, stroke, stroke… the motions went on and on as he crossed the length of the pool over and over, underwater. Jondy checked her stopwatch again; 8:45 – he was long past breaking the X5 record, and he didn't show any signs of coming up for air.  
  
Stroke, stroke, glide, flip, push off, glide, stroke, stroke… the rhythm of it soaked into Tye's mind, helping him to push down the burning in his lungs which was starting to grow. 'Two more laps.' Tye thought, and he pushed himself harder to meet the goal.  
  
On the last lap, the pressure in Tye's lungs was almost overwhelming. Almost. Stroke, stoke, glide, and touch. Tye surfaced in a rush of bubbles and anxious energy. Water drops flew through the air in an effort to get out of his way.  
  
Jondy hit stop and wiped water off of her forehead with a bemused expression. 10:04. A new record as far as she knew. Tye treaded water patiently, waiting for Jondy's next word.  
  
"Good work Tye. 10 minutes, 4 seconds." Jondy said, catching the proud sparkle in his eye. "Go take a shower and report back. We'll do one more run today, then you can go hang with your girlfriend." She said, changing to a teasing tone at the last remark. Tye jumped out of the pool and headed towards the shower.  
  
"She's not my girlfriend." He said lightly, turning back. Jondy just raised an eyebrow and motioned him off.  
  
****  
  
"Again." Zane's voice echoed up to Teli. Teli took a deep breath, and began again. Back handspring, jump twist, front flip to a handspring, twist, back one and a half, hold the handstand, back walkover, jump twist, front double flip, land, freeze. Teli teetered slightly on the landing. Her breath caught in her throat as she glanced down the drop. She was doing her gymnastics up on a high, narrow ledge – an exercise in balance and precision, as Zane had put it.  
  
"Again!" Zane yelled. "And clean up that landing!" Teli could almost read his unsaid thought – 'a landing like that will cost you sometime in the future…' Teli shoved all other thoughts away as she readied for the next execution. She concentrated on the moves and the feeling of solid rock beneath her gloved hands. For all the moves she went through, it only took a little under five seconds. She landed. Flawless.  
  
****  
  
Sweat pour down his face as Tye circled, dancing back and forth, looking to throw the next punch. They'd been practicing now going on three hours and Jondy wasn't showing any signs of letting up. She knew Tye was good, but she had the edge in training. At any sign of weakness Jondy pulled out the punches, battering Tye's defenses. Boxing wasn't about pure strength; it was about power, speed, and strategy. Tye had the speed, had the power, and now Jondy was trying to give him her nine-plus years of tactics training.  
  
Tye went in for a punch, opening up his whole left side. Jondy ducked, spinning quickly and threw a few hard jabs into the open side. Tye almost cringed. He knew what she was thinking: 'An enemy would've been armed, and you would've just been killed.' That would cost him another hour in the ring. Jondy was determined to keep him going until she couldn't land any punches.  
  
****  
  
Los Angeles hadn't changed much in the 30 some years after the Pulse. The culture and life of the city still thrived in all its colorful glory. One could meet any number of characters walking the streets, especially on a Saturday night. It was this that made the city ideal; it was easy it was to slip away into the crowds.  
  
Three adults materialized out of that crowd on that mid-August night. One by one, they entered a bustling little bar and gathered at a back table. Each nodded a greeting and sat down to business.  
  
"Report." Came the soft, but firm command.  
  
"The girl is progressing nicely in her training. Still has a few things to learn, but she should be ready when the time comes."  
  
"The boy is also doing well. Training is progressing as planned."  
  
"Any surveillance for me?" Pictures were immediately tossed out onto the table. Max slowly reached for images, forcing a tear to stay firmly behind her eye.  
  
"Tye's demeanor is the mirror image of Zack's, had Zack not lived so long as Manticore. He's got that solid core of responsibility Zack had, but with a sense of humor," Jondy told Max, who cracked a small smile at that description of the sixteen-year-old in the picture.  
  
"And Teli has Tinga's." Zack said, softy. "Determined, but loving." Max took two pictures and held them side-by-side. The smiling faces of Teli and Tye did not look like the faces of soldiers, but the faces of happy teens.  
  
"I didn't realize they'd look so much alike." Max finally said. As children they had been identical, and Max had assumed their looks would grow apart, but the dark-haired, tan-skinned, green-eyed twins grinned up through the pictures, still nearly identical. The lines of Teli's face were softer and Tye's hair much shorter, but save that the two looked the same. Zane simply nodded at her words. Jondy took up a picture of Teli, looking at her closely for the first time. A note of surprise and bittersweet memories crossed Max's face when she saw that particular picture.  
  
"Jondy, in that picture, Teli looks almost exactly like her mother."  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
The days have been flying past this last month. I can hardly believe it's the end of August already! Zane has been working me hard. But I must admit, I rather enjoy the training. I never knew what I was capable of until he came along and started helping me. I love the feeling of being able to work my muscles and stretch my limbs. It's like…I had always felt I wasn't doing what I could, and to be able to release that power now is an awesome feeling. Of course, it's a little hard keeping all this from everyone. Well, almost everyone. Kat knows; she's the only one who knows. She's been handling it rather well too. It must be hard for her though, it's a lot to take it.  
  
On another note, Shane took me out after my workout today. He was a bit concerned with the cuts on my hands, but after a little reassuring (and good lying skills on my part) he was set at ease. I thought it was sweet, though, that he cared. We took a picnic lunch down by the lake. We talked and talked; his mind is full of hopeful ideas and open optimism. It's good to see someone with so much faith that things will turn out – it helps me get through the days when my training isn't going so well. I think you would like him. He's one of those people who want to change the world, make it a better place. Not what I expected, I must say. After all, he's got an earring, slightly unkempt (but cute) hair, and he was a ski instructor. Not that any of that means anything. It just goes to show that you can't judge people by what they first seem, as cliche as that saying may be. I hope I get to spend a lot of time with him the rest of this fading summer. He's a great guy. I wish I could tell him my story. Though, I'd be afraid of ruining his perfect views of the world. It'd be a hell of a lot harder to change the world with perfect soldiers out there working with the government to keep it how it is.  
  
One thing I've noticed though: I thought that finding out why I'm different and where I came from would answer all my questions. But, in truth, it's only raised up more. Such as, what would I be doing today had you not gotten me out? And, most of all – where is my brother and what is he like today?  
  
I get the feeling that all this training has a purpose, other then teaching me what I can do. And I get the feeling that whatever this alternative purpose is, it's about to come into play. And that thought, I must admit, scares me.  
  
-- Teli 


	19. Relocated

A pager in Nevada and a pager in Arizona went off only moments apart. Both carriers looked nervously down at the flashing numbers on the little screen. 752 632 565 flashed. 'GET OUT NOW.'  
  
****  
  
It was a regular evening at the Stevens' house. Brian was running around with an old remote controlled truck, Teli was sitting at the dinning room table, paging through the day's newspaper, glancing over the different stories while her parents were bustling around in the kitchen, preparing dinner. Teli was skimming through the sports page when she felt a familiar, rubber and plastic caused crunch on her bare toe.  
  
"Brian! Get that stupid truck away from my feet!" Teli snapped, trying not to be too loud and attract parental attention. Brian grinned mischievously. Teli glared back for a moment. 'What on earth did I do to deserve a little bother on top of everything else?' Teli mumbled to herself.  
  
"Teli, make that ramp for me again." Brian demanded, ignoring her annoyed tone. Teli's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Are you gonna keep that toy away from my toes this time?" She asked shortly. Brian nodded enthusiastically, but that didn't necessarily mean anything.  
  
"Brian, help your mother set the table." Dave said suddenly, poking his head into the dinning room and glancing at the toy truck at Teli's feet. Brian scrunched up his forehead and wrinkled his nose.  
  
"But Teli was just gonna…" Brian's brief protest was cut short.  
  
"Teli can build you a ramp after dinner." Dave said with a fatherly look. Teli grinned at her dad and followed Brian into the kitchen.  
  
"Teli, sweetheart, would you run to the store for me and get some bread?" Jane cheerfully asked while she handed Brian the placemats to set the table.  
  
"Sure, Mom." Teli replied, turning towards the door and slipping on a pair of sandals. The store was only a mile down the road; Teli would be back before dinner was out of the oven.  
  
As Teli left the store, bag in hand, a dark red and black motorcycle screeched to a halt in front of her. Zane's dark locks fell over a new pair of shades. Teli was about to make a smart remark about the new glasses, but a sudden sense of alarm clutched at her heart. She didn't say anything; she stood frozen, waiting for him to speak the words she feared – words which she had no choice but to heed.  
  
"You've got one hour. Meet here, 19:30." Zane's direct words stung her ears. Teli broke the eye contact and nodded quickly. She didn't watch as the motorcycle roared away.  
  
"Just in time Tee!" Brian bounced in his chair as the family sat down to dinner. "I saved you a seat, too!" Teli tried to smile at her little brother, forgetting their earlier dispute over the truck.  
  
"Thanks Brian." Teli said softly as she took her seat beside him. Jane set her daughter's plate down in front of her. Teli looked around at her family, gathered together in their homey little kitchen. The knowledge that this would be her last family dinner boar down on her mind and a liquid weight began to sting her eyes.  
  
"Excited for school to start soon hun?" Dave asked, starting up the dinner conversation. Teli blinked quickly and smiled weakly at her dad, hesitating before she answered.  
  
"I think so." Teli paused, wondering how swallowing helped to ward off tears. "It'll… be good to see everyone." She said in slow, deliberate words. 'I can't tell them. I can't even warn them…' Teli thought miserably.  
  
Dinner was over quickly, too quickly for Teli. Brian had scampered off to show Dave his latest construction creation, completely forgetting about the toy truck, as usual. Teli was left alone with her mother. She took a deep breath. There was not much time left, but she had to say something.  
  
"Mom…" Teli started but her voice broke off in a miserable sigh. This time, Teli couldn't stop the tears from welling up.  
  
"What is it, honey? You've been acting down ever since you came back from the store." Jane said as she sat down by her daughter. Teli looked into her mother's loving face and felt the misery in her own become all too evident.  
  
"Mom, I have to…" Teli started, "I have to go away for a while – it has to do with my…" Teli's voice failed her and she could not stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks.  
  
"What is it Teli?" Jane asked, now sounding very worried and slightly alarmed.  
  
"I…" But Teli couldn't say it. "I'm sorry!" She burst out, and sobbed into her hands. "I'm, so, so sorry." She whispered through the tears. Jane felt tears of her own roll down her cheeks as she put a loving hand on Teli's shoulder, trying to comfort, trying to be an understanding mother, though she did not fully understand.  
  
"Shh, shh. It'll be okay, honey. Whatever it is, it'll be okay. Hush now." She said soothingly. Teli took a few deep breaths and finally raised her tear stained face.  
  
"Mom, you have to promise me something." Teli made her voice strong, the light of determination glinting in her eyes. "You can't look for me. You *can't*. It will only put you in danger." Teli paused, "Please, promise you won't look for me." The final words rushed out forcefully, yet clear tones of misery and urgency rang in them. Jane just looked at Teli, afraid and not sure what to think. Her eyes filled with fresh tears. After a moment she reached for Teli's hand. Something in Teli's voice, in how she'd been acting the whole summer, in the ever-mysterious past, had warned Jane this day might be coming.  
  
"Okay Teli." She said finally. "I promise." She whispered in a broken voice. "But please, come back." She said softly, a desperate note in her tone.  
  
"I will Mom. I swear it." Teli leaned forward and Jane hugged her tight. When they pulled apart Teli quickly jumped up and ran to her room. Jane watched her dash away and let a few more tears fall.  
  
An extra pair of jeans, a dark shirt, her pocketknife, and her journal were all Teli shoved into the backpack. Donning her leather jacket, Teli ran back down the stairs, caught her parents' eyes one last time with a sorrowful look, and hurried out the door.  
  
Kat heard the call whistle and glanced at the clock. It was 7:15 – an odd time for Teli to be visiting. Kat opened the window and whistled back. Once outside, Kat sensed the change in Teli, saw the tear stains on her cheeks, and knew, even before Teli said anything, what was happening. Kat threw her arms around her friend and hugged her tight. Teli returned the embrace, but pulled back after a moment to look directly into Kat's sad eyes.  
  
"Kat, you know about me." Teli said slowly, but firmly. "That puts you in a lot of danger." Kat nodded gravely. "If anyone, military or other, comes looking around, you have got to get out of town." Teli said, a note of urgency ringing in her tone. Kat nodded again, dropping her eyes and letting the information soaking in, realizing clearly then the danger she was potentially in. After a moment, she looked up, silent tears falling down her cheeks.  
  
"I'm really gonna miss you." She said softly, feeling the need to state the obvious.  
  
"You just be careful while I'm gone." Teli whispered back.  
  
"What about Shane?" Kat asked a moment later. Another wave of sadness flashed through Teli's eyes. 'If only I had more time…' Teli thought.  
  
"Say goodbye to him for me?" She asked. Kat nodded uncertainly. Teli checked the time. 7:25.  
  
"I've gotta go." She said softly. Kat blinked hard to keep more tears away.  
  
"Just come back." She whispered urgently.  
  
"I will." 'If I can.' Teli thought, and she felt tears rise up again at that thought. She quickly turned and slipped away. Kat watched Teli leave, half jogging down the road. She couldn't make herself look away from the path Teli had taken, hoping for some miracle to turn her around. Finally, the faint sound of a motorcycle reached Kat's ears, and she knew that Teli was really gone.  
  
****  
  
Tye had said all his goodbyes, save one, and they had only talked briefly so that Aliana would know what to do if people came looking. Now all he had to do was say goodbye and leave. 'Easier said than done.' Tye thought miserably. 'No. Don't be weak. All you have to do is say good bye and walk away.' Determination echoed in his mind. Then he looked up. Aliana was walking down the barn aisle towards him, not even trying to conceal the tears that ran in rivers down her soft cheeks. Tye could not bear to watch the pain in her eyes, and his resolve faded.  
  
She stopped barely a foot in front of him. Tye slowly raised his gaze from where it was fixed on the ground and looked into her sad eyes. Aliana's outline blurred for a moment as he blinked back tears. He suddenly wanted to say a thousand things, but knew that he couldn't, that he shouldn't. A fresh welling of tears rose in Aliana's eyes and Tye knew she was holding back sobs. Slowly, she reached out to touch Tye's arm and wrap her fingers in the soft fabric of his shirt, wanting to hold on to something, anything. Tye felt a single tear trace its way down his cheek, and he couldn't stand it any longer. He pulled Aliana close and wrapped his arms tight around her. She returned the embrace, holding on as if she never planned to let go. Tye rested his temple on the top of her head and rocked slightly, trying to comfort. He felt her soft sobs against his chest.  
  
After a moment, Tye pulled back slightly, put his fingers under her chin and raised her tear-filled eyes to his. He almost couldn't speak.  
  
"I promise you," he whispered fiercely, his hand moving to stroke her cheek, "I will come back." He felt Aliana take a shuddering breath as she nodded. "I promise." He repeated, never looking away from her eyes. Slowly, Tye leaned down as Aliana raised her face to his and their lips met softly for the first time. She tasted slightly of cherry lip balm, yet salty from the tears that had run down her cheeks.  
  
"Goodbye, Tye." Aliana whispered when they pulled apart. Tye rubbed his thumb across her smooth skin and wipped away a tear.  
  
"Goodbye, Ali." He looked into her eyes a moment longer. One last tear trickled out of his eye. Then quickly he turned and walked away, his mind already trying to shake itself free from the pain of emotions as he forcefully whisked away the final tear from his face. Aliana just stood there, frozen. One hand still outstretched as if to pull him back. A moment later a car door slammed and an engine was gunned. As the tires squealed, Aliana crumpled to the floor and sobbed. 


	20. Travels

'This, I could get used to.' Teli thought to herself as she felt the motion and power of the motorcycle underneath her. 'Wish Zane would let me drive for a change.' Teli mumbled in her mind. The trivial thought was easy to deal with, as it had no connection to the bitter ones that constantly threatened to take over her mind. They had been traveling all through night on the winding country roads Zane choose, pitch-black save for the starlight. Not that the two transgenics were having any problems with that, however.  
  
A moving figure trotting along the side of the road caught Teli's eye. She only had a few seconds to take it in from her seat on the speeding motorcycle. It was a dog, a German Shepard mix. Teli was instantly reminded of Molly. In her mind's eye she saw Molly as a puppy, playful and squirmy. It had taken two whole days for Brian and Teli to teach her how to sit, lie down, and stay. Teli smiled softly to herself at the memory, little Molly with her huge puppy paws and too much wiggly energy. She and Brian would have to teach Molly some new tricks when she came home. 'If I come home.' The thought harshly jerked Teli back to reality like a bucket of ice water had been dumped down her back. She felt the unexpected salty sting of tears in her eyes and a sudden painful pressure build in her chest. 'Oh man.' Teli thought as she tried to blink the tears away, 'such a simple memory and this is how I react? Some soldier I make.' Teli starred at the black leather jacket in front of her. A new respect for the person in front of her dawned Teli's mind as she fought to push away the pain of memories. 'They've had to do this all their lives, suppress everything and keep going. I don't know if I can do that.' Teli thought sadly.  
  
Unwilling to risk any exposure, Zane chose a remote, abandoned building for their first night's lodgings - actually, it was first day's. The two of them had traveled into the early morning, when Zane had decided to take cover during the day, pulling up to the old building just as the sun graced the sky. It was a spooky looking place. Shadows stretched long and gloomy in the early light. The roof was collapsing in places and the old wooden floorboards had rotted away years ago. Cobwebs shrouded the beams and old, dry straw was scattered from the drafts. The stale stench of animals long since gone led Teli to the conclusion that they were in some sort of old barn. That old barn was where Teli left the last of her tears behind. Two bright drops trickled down her face as she took in her harsh surroundings, out of place amidst the dead rot. She had gone from a nice family dinner to hiding with the rats and less then 24 hours. The surreal reality settled heavily on her shoulders as she sank down heavily against an old beam. Zane saw the streaks on Teli's cheeks and simply said "None of that," in sympathetic but firm tone. Teli took a deep breath, wiped the tears away and tried to check her emotions. She looked up at Zane, a glare in her sad eyes. Zane looked back, purposefully expressionless. He knew what she was going through was tough, but h*ll, he'd been doing it his whole life, Teli would get used to it in time.  
  
It was times like that which made Teli glad she didn't need much sleep. The day wore on slowly; Teli watched the patterns of light and shadow lines stretch out across the dirt floor, shrink, and then stretch long again towards the east. Zane drifted in and out of an uneasy sleep, snapping wide-awake at any disturbance in the silence that penetrated the old barn. Teli tried to sleep, but it drifted just out of her reach. When the sky finally darkened, Teli was not sorry to leave the place.  
  
They were on the road again by 2100 that evening, traveling through the dark under the same starlit skies. Teli reflected again on the motorcycle and its fluid motion. She'd never been on one before this experience. 'I think my first investment will have to be in one of these.' Teli thought absentmindedly. Once again, she had plenty of time to think, with Zane silently guiding the bike onward. She tried hard to keep her thoughts on their destination and not on what she had left behind. Slowly, Teli built a shell around her, in which she would be safe, safe from the pain, safe from the memories. It was easier that way, blocking out all the names, faces, recollections and places in her memory. They were all connected to her life, yet the life she had led was, in so many ways a lie, and that made all the memories feel like lies as well. It already seemed years ago that she had left everything behind. So instead of dwelling on her past life, Teli watched the little country towns they passed with keen eyes. All the houses were dark and the streets were quiet. Teli and Zane passed through like apparitions in a ghost town, unknown and unwelcome. Teli knew Zane had taken a path up through parts northern Nevada, running alongside the mountains she knew so well. Eventually, she figured, they would have to turn west if they were going into the cities to disappear into the crowds. At least, she was assuming that was the plan.  
  
But Zane turned east, leaving the little towns and the towering protection of the mountains behind for the open exposure of freezing nights and sweltering days.  
  
"Zane," Teli ventured a question for the first time since they'd left the gloomy old barn, "Why east? You'll head right into the desert." Teli thought she would just get silence from the concentrated back she was always facing, but Zane did answer.  
  
"And so will anyone who is trying to follow." He said shortly, leaving Teli to figure out the tactics on her own. Of course. Teli felt like slapping herself. If she had just thought a *little*, she would've realized Zane was taking a roundabout way to their destination to throw anyone off their trail. 'Someone on our trail.' The thought suddenly disturbed Teli, and she glanced quickly behind them, but only the black road and dark, empty fields met her eyes. She turned back to Zane.  
  
"Someone is following?" She asked, glancing back to the nothingness they were leaving behind.  
  
"Someone is always following." He answered, and pushed the bike into a higher gear.  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel,  
  
Seems like it's been a while since I've written, well, guess I'll catch up. Leaving my family and my home is the hardest thing I've ever had to do, even though it already feels like that life was a dream or something. I guess I always knew it would come to this; I just didn't want to accept it, didn't want to believe it. I could hardly stand the look on my mother's face when she watched me walk out the door - it's hard to believe she actually let me go. She must've known somehow that I had to, that this was a choice made for me by something out of my control. And Kat, God, I hope she's okay. I should never have told her anything! She'd be safe that way; it'll be my fault if anything happens to her. She never asked for this, and I laid it all on her shoulders, couldn't carry it all myself. That was really stupid of me, but I wanted so much to be able to talk to her, talk to someone, selfish as that is. And Shane. Will I ever see him again? He always seemed to just understand me, no matter what. Even though I never told him anything. And now I'm really glad I didn't.  
  
Zane has been pushing pretty hard these past few days. He's a hard one to figure out, the only side I ever saw was the trainer, the drill sergeant, the soldier who pushed me to be better. Is this him? Or is this the mask all rouges hide behind? Who knows what I'll learn about him on this little journey, though, I think I'm starting to see the world how he seems to sees it - bleak and dangerous, or at least, I'm starting to think like a soldier, like he wants me to. Not to say I like it, because I don't, not a bit. I've never really felt unsafe before, and now, every shadow holds a potential threat. Trust no one. Leave nothing to chance. No such thing as luck. I don't know how he can stand it, to keep his guard up all the time.  
  
We travel at night and rest, sometimes, during the day. I think he needs more sleep than I do or we'd probably be on the road more often. You know, I always wanted to travel, to see the world. I just never figure I'd be doing it like this, at night, running from an enemy I don't even know. And I can't even see much of the world when we're speeding past it in the dark.  
  
The thought that keeps me going right now is that I'll get to see my brother, and that I'll get to meet you again. I figured, well, hoped, that since I was being moved, my brother would be too. I hope if he was, that leaving was less painful for him. Somehow I doubt it. And if your thoughts are at all similar to Zane's then the chances of me meeting him again are slim. I understand the reasons for this, really I do. But oh, how I want to meet him! He's the only family I've got now. Please?  
  
--Teli 


	21. Colors of a City

They did turn east. Passing quickly through a mountain pass, they traveled hard for two days straight. Stopping only for gas and quick breaks. Teli had never seen a huge city; her family had not had the means to travel far. Now she and Zane passed road signs to San Francisco in the fading afternoon light and the trademarks of a city grew by the minute.  
The first thing Zane did when they entered the city was to trade in the motorcycle for some cash, two thirds of which he gave to Teli. When she protested, he just gave her a stern look and moved on. They passed quickly through the bustling streets. People crowed the sidewalks and bunched into little shops and market stalls. Faded ads still covered the sides of the old building and a fresh coat of whitewash or of spray paint covered many walls. The colors of the people and the city fascinated Teli, for they glistened and pulsed with a life of their own, so different from her little Nevada town.  
Zane seemed to blend right into the fluid crowd, becoming a part of it rather then an observer or stranger to it. Teli guessed his skill at this came from his many years on the run. She mimicked his motions and his new non-soldierly attitude and found herself acting much like she would have had she been visiting here with her own family. Teli observed, with a measure of delight, that due to her many years as a 'normal' human, she blended quite naturally. Too naturally.  
Caught off guard, Teli felt herself swept into a narrow alley off the street. To prove a point, she found herself thrown against a hard brick wall before she could even react. "Just because you can blend in does not mean you can let your guard down." Zane snapped in her ear, warning and disappointment rang in his tone. Teli immediately responded to the reprimand, standing up straight and looking Zane in the eye. It was true, she had let her guard down, but she was still none too happy about having to have a guard up at all. 'I wish I could just be normal. Be home. Not have to have my stupid guard up 24-7!' Teli thought. Zane suddenly seemed to soften.  
"Teli, I know this is hard for you. But you can't deny who you are. You've been doing very well, keep it up. Remember what you are and what would happen should they catch you." He seemed to be reading her thoughts again, but Teli knew he was only trying to help. Well, he was right, and Teli knew it. She nodded gravely and after a moment they drifted back into the crowd.  
  
"Here we are." Zane said a few minutes later. They had reached what appeared to be a cheep, run down motel. Teli looked at him quizzically. Zane almost chuckled at her expression.  
"Yes, Teli. We are staying here. I'm sorry it won't be more. to your liking ma'am." He teased, letting the instructor attitude drop for a moment. "You didn't think we'd be traveling in luxury now did you?" Teli smiled and shook her head as they went in.  
"Can I help you?" The desk lady asked in a bored tone. Zane smiled a charming smile that nearly knocked Teli off her feet in surprise. 'He can be charming?! Where did that come from?' Teli though, almost laughing.  
"Yes ma'am. We'd like a double room for the next two nights." Zane said in a warm and polite voice, the smile still on his face. 'Next two nights?' Teli though, puzzled. The lady started to warm to the smile, even shot a quick grin in Zane's direction as she started processing the information. 'He's good.' Teli thought with a grin, 'or she's easy.' Her mind countered.  
"One small request ma'am?" Zane asked tentatively. The lady did not smile at that. 'Good one Zane.' Teli thought. The lady peered over her thick-rimmed glasses and raised an eyebrow.  
"Could we get a room on the top floor? My niece hasn't seen the city yet and you've got a pretty good view." Zane asked, as politely as possible. The lady let her eyebrow drop and glanced at the computer.  
"Yeah, I guess I can do that." She replied and finished filling out the info.  
  
Once in their small double room Zane did something unexpected. He walked to the window, opened it, jumped up onto the sill and leapt up and out. 'Oh good lord!' Teli thought, 'what on earth is he doing?' She followed, jumping up onto the roof with little difficulty.  
The setting sun glared in Teli's eyes as she looked for Zane. She found him crouched by one of the three chimney-like structures. He carefully pried a brick out of place, which plopped into his lap just as Teli crouched down beside him. She watched, curious, as Zane began to chip away at the brick. Pretty soon the top layer broke off, reviling a hollow center. Inside was a tiny computer chip. Zane pocketed the chip, replaced the brick and motioned to Teli to return to the room.  
Once inside, Zane pulled what looked like a palm-pilot from the days of old out of his pack. He slipped the chip into the back and turned the thing on. An encoded message blinked on the screen.  
"What is it?" Teli asked, puzzled, as she stared over his shoulder.  
"Instructions." Zane answered, his eyes scanning the little screen. "I'm to meet Max in two days, this tells me when and where." Teli guessed that wasn't all it told him, but her ears perked up at the name, which had previously only been spoken once and so she was distracted.  
"So, where do we go?" Teli ask, excited.  
"Not 'we,' I'm going alone. You're going to learn to travel on your own." The words chilled Teli. 'Alone, in this city?' The human part of her asked. 'I can do it, I was designed to survive.' The soldier part replied. Zane was looking at her, waiting for a response. Teli finally nodded and sat down heavily on one of the beds.  
"Tomorrow I'll be showing you the ropes and giving you your instructions. Then I have to leave. We'll meet again at the destination." Zane said before he too sat down on the opposite bed. "Now, let's get some sleep, it'll be a long day tomorrow." With that said, he flipped off the light.  
Teli waited until Zane's breathing had evened out before she rose to go to her bag. She slowly pulled out her journal and sat down at the flimsy desk to write.  
  
**** Dear Angel,  
San Francisco is a beautiful city. I love all the energy and all the colors. I can see why people like you, and me, would be drawn to such a city; it is very easy to blend into the crowds. I think I could spend a long time here and not get bored. But it doesn't look like I'm going to have that opportunity.  
It frightens me a little that Zane will be leaving me on my own. It's such a big place and I've never traveled much. But I know I can do whatever it is you and he wish of me. I just hope I don't run into much trouble on the way. If all I have to do is get from one place to another without getting caught I think I'll manage. Let me guess, easier said then done? That's what I thought. Well, Zane trained me well. Or reminded me well, whichever way you'd like to think of it.  
I hope I'll be seeing you soon. Zane mentioned your name today - Max. At least, that's what I've guessed from the 'MG.' Any news of my brother? Well, goodnight for now, here's to meeting you soon.  
--Teli 


	22. Silver and Black

"Are we clear on how this is going down?" Zane asked as he tossed Teli a brown paper bag. Teli gave a sharp nod before she peered into the bag, finding a raisin bagel. Zane un-shouldered another heavy duffle bag and set it next to a small briefcase he'd carried in. Teli bit into her bagel and gave a quizzical glace at the bags. "Equipment." Zane answered shortly. Teli raised her eyebrows, still questioning, while she munched on breakfast. "Well, can can't exactly waltz in and just take what we want now can we?" Zane answered, opening the duffle. Teli peered in, curious. "Where did you get all this stuff?" She asked, a surprised note in her voice. Zane glanced up from rummaging through the briefcase. "Trick of the trade. You learn to recognize where you can get what you need." He replied. Teli nodding, pondering the statement, and took another bite of her bagel.  
  
It was early. Only the most addicted workaholics were waking up. Teli and Zane needed new, and separate methods of transportation. Zane has guessed what Teli has her heart set on. The jump over the impound lot fence was an easy one. Zane slipped into the small building that guarded the lot and knocked out the guard. When Teli landed she found herself nose to nose with a growling snout. 'Great, I had to be part cat.' Teli thought. After a brief, but fierce, stare down, Teli proved superior. She then tossed the dog a treat, glad of Zane's thorough preparation. Zane signaled from the guardhouse. Teli quickly scanned her options. The choice proved an easy one. The dark silver and black bike glinted in the moonlight. Teli signaled her pick and Zane disappeared back in to grab the keys.  
  
"Are they always that easy?" Teli asked, a grin on her face. They had just pulled up to the little motel. Zane shot her a look. "No, Teli, they're not." He replied. But Teli had had too much fun driving back to their hotel to heed his warning. "Take it for a few more trips around the block, get real comfortable driving it. I've got another errand to run." Zane said quickly, stepping onto the curb. "Where are you off to?" Teli asked - this was not in the day's plan. But her question fell on Zane's back a he strode into the motel.  
  
He never came back. Teli returned from her test-drives expecting him to be in their room. Instead she found the duffel bag all packed up with an envelope on top.  
  
"1900 -- Re-locate to Redding, CA. Hotel California SunDays. Northeast.  
  
Further instructions will be provided there.  
  
Upon Arrival -- Solo mission: acquirer communications equipment.  
  
Location: 2 clicks from hotel's location, due northwest."  
  
'Thanks Zane. Great goodbye.' Teli thought as she plopped down on the bed. 'I'm alone.' The thought struck suddenly. 'Totally alone.' Teli shook her head. 'Well, I've been training all summer for this. I can do this.' Teli thought, determined. The envelope crumpled in Teli's hand and she chucked it into the trash, shoving the note in her pocket. 'Well, first step, figure out where the hell I'm going now.' Teli swung the duffle bag over her shoulder and headed out to relocate. 


	23. Solo

Mr. Dankles was the quiet sort. He kept his shop clean and well managed, happy to help an entering customer. But beyond these brief interactions he mostly kept to himself. He was a short, stumpy little man with keen eyes and rather quick mind. That evening, before he closed up, he carefully took inventory of all his electronic toys, computers, and other techy equipment - he was proud of his merchandise, best in the whole city of Redding. At last he waved goodbye to the security camera and turned the old silver key in the lock. Never did he feel the watching eyes or see the sly smile that grew as he drove away.  
  
****  
Teli's sly smile grew as the dumpy little man drove off. Quickly and silently she made her way across the dark roof. Her entry point was a small window that faced a back alley. Slowly Teli lowered herself down, glad for the strong rope Zane had left her. At the window she hung, cautiously peering in. A single security camera swept its way across the room, a little red eye blinking. Teli quickly lowered herself below the window as the recording eye swept over the window. Slowly she counted the seconds, thankful that the window lay at the end of the camera's sweep, not the middle.  
  
At ten seconds Teli peeked again, seeing the red eye just past her point. Quickly she punched a little hole in the window, wincing at the shattering sound. Reaching quickly in, Teli found a latch, lifted, and let the window swing open above her. Glancing at the menacing camera Teli judged she had another ten seconds to get in and undercover before the red eye swept over her spot again. She hoisted herself up, undid the carabineer, and dropped silently in.  
  
She landed in a crouch, finding herself behind the main desk of the shop. Quickly she rolled under a ledge and counted again, patiently. After a moment Teli rose and made her way along the wall, getting effectively under the camera where it could not see. She breathed a small sigh of relief, but remembering Zane's words, she kept her senses on full alert. From under the camera Teli could safely scan the store for her objective.  
  
It was a small little laptop, but the latest in the line of high speed, high memory capacity with built in wireless Internet. Teli saw it proudly displayed in the little store's front window. Switching to infrared vision, Teli scanned for lasers. Two crisscrossed the room between her and the objective, one more shown near the laptop - as its personal guard. Teli smiled and shrugged her coat off.  
  
A cartwheel to a back handspring brought Teli within reach of her target. Confident that the little red eye couldn't see through her jacket, Teli proceeded. Two little mirrors appeared out of her pack. Teli held her breath and carefully slipped them into the line of the last laser. No alarm went off. Teli breathed again and reached for the little computer.  
  
****  
  
Dear Angel, It's been a really interesting few days. First off, I love my motorcycle! That was quite a fun little adventure. I am never going back to regular old cars again!  
  
Okay, secondly. Zane left yesterday. So, now I'm here, on my own. It's a very. alone feeling. I'm not sure if I like it or not. Leaning towards not, but it does have some perks. I guess I'll just have to get used to it. The trip to Redding wasn't bad at all. Like I said, never going back to cars!  
  
Completed my first solo mission - if you could call it a real mission. Stole a 'communications device.' Well, that's how Zane put it. I'd call it a regular old laptop - wireless Internet of course. It was pretty fun actually. Getting around the camera was my main concern, after that the little lasers, but it all worked out as I'd hoped. I skipped out of there pretty quick once I'd gotten the computer in my backpack and viola! Teli has her own, personal laptop computer. Got back to my room and crashed. I can go a while without sleep, but 62 hours is a long time even for me.  
  
So, anyway, I think I'll use this wireless Internet so see if I can get a message to Kat. But first, I've gotta check for my new instructions. Time to head up to the roof. Write more later.  
  
  
--Teli  
  
****  
  
Night was falling as Teli pulled herself out onto the roof. It was obvious that no one had been up there for many years; the upper floors of the 24- story building were rickety and old. 'No wonder the hotel is only on the first few floors.' Teli mussed as she slipped along the rooftop, a silhouette against the darkened sky. The chimney like structure was her objective. Once there Teli tapped on the bricks, listening hard for that hollow clunk. She was soon rewarded and pride the brick from its spot.  
  
Behind where the brick had been were many papers. An old passport, a card labeled 'sector pass,' and a note.  
  
'Your destination is Seattle. There you will need the sector pass and Passport. Go to sector 9 and find Foggle Towers, PT level. Be quick, but watch your back. They're closer then you think. Good luck. - Zane.'  
  
Teli nodded as if she had heard Zane speaking. Putting the note aside Teli opened the Passport. A small gasp escaped Teli's lips in wonder as she first saw the picture. The girl looked almost exactly like Teli, save for a slightly tanner complexion and wariness in her eyes. She was a few years older too. Teli looked at the date, but her keen eyes told her the year had been carefully updated to make the Passport current. Teli glanced at the sector pass. The same wary eyes looked back at her. Curious, Teli looked back at the Passport, which she saw had also been carefully tampered with. 'So,' Teli thought, 'my alias is now Penny Smith. I wonder who she was.' Teli mussed as she read the name.  
  
Teli glanced up at the starless night sky. She quickly replaced the brick and shoved the papers into her backpack. Then, on silent feet, Teli made her way back inside and dropped lightly down to the 24th floor. Here Teli set her bag down, pulled out the computer and flicked it on. As it booted up, Teli pulled out a short piece of phone cord and took off her silver bracelet. Cautiously, Teli plugged the phone line into the computer, started up the Internet from the main screen, and plugged the phone cord into the outlet embedded in her wrist. With a deep breath, Teli closed her eyes and entered the online world with her mind.  
  
****  
  
Twenty minutes later Teli opened her eyes again. Something had called her back, yet she was unsure of what. The computer, new as it may be, had old software and Teli, try as she might, had been unable to locate Kat or hack into her e-mail. Teli's only concern at that moment was making sure whomever 'they' were, that they didn't get to Kat. Zane has said 'they're closer then you think' and that meant Kat was in danger too. Teli blinked her green eyes in frustration and slammed the laptop closed.  
  
That's when she heard it.  
  
(Return to Chapter One) 


	24. Winding Roads

Teli's silver motorcycle glided smoothly across the blacktop highway, carrying her closer to her destination, closer to safety, closer to all the answers she desired. Her encounter with the Manticore in Redding was still fresh in her mind. It had been a close call, much too close. Teli tightened her grip on the handlebars and shifted into a higher gear. The whine of the tires jumped up in pitch as they spun faster, whipping through central Oregon. By Teli's calculations, she should be in southern Washington before sundown.

"Hey, you've reached my cell phone, obviously I haven't answered, but I will call you back eventually, so leave a message." Shane's friendly recorded voice rang in Kat's ear. She'd been trying to get a hold of him for two days now and all she could reach was his voicemail. It was beyond frustrating. Kat debated again whether or not to leave a message. She had repeatedly hung up, expecting him to call anyway since cell phones did show what calls were missed. But he hadn't. Stupid male. Kat sighed and spoke quickly into the speaker.

"Shane, this is Kat. We need to talk, it's about...Teli. Call me." Kat hung up her phone quickly; a sudden prickle of paranoia accelerated her actions. She glared suspiciously at the phone line for a moment and then glanced out the window. It was a beautiful day, a light breeze lifted the open curtains and bright sunshine streamed through the window. No shadows, no black cars with tinted windows, no strangers, no nothing. 'Maybe I'm over reacting.' Kat thought, she was more and more starting to wonder what it was Teli had been so worried about. Everything was normal. Well, mostly normal; life was tough when your best friend literally disappears.

"You know, if you were going to steal a car anyway, you could've at least stolen one that actually worked." Tye commented dryly to the half-visible woman under the car.

"Yes, Tye. Let's steal a really nice car so we can have the police and whoever else on our tail." Jondy's voice replied from her position under the broken-down vehicle. Tye shrugged and resumed his long pacing steps, back and forth along the length of the car as he repeatedly scanned their surroundings. The view never changed, dark desert sands lying lifeless and unforgiving on either side of the little highway.

"Would you quit your pacing and give me a hand?" Jondy called a minute later, sliding out from under the car. Tye stopped walking and glanced at Jondy's grease-smeared face.

"I spent my childhood on the back of a horse, not under the hood of a car." Tye replied hesitantly. He leaned back against the car's frame and waited, knowing full well Jondy would not take that as an excuse.

"Your point being...?" Jondy asked, raising an eyebrow as she wiped a smudge off her forehead.

"That I might do more harm then good under there." Tye answered simply. A half laugh escaped Jondy's lips.

"Guess it's time you learned then." She said with a smile as Tye caught the 5/8th wrench she tossed his way.

Shane listened to the message again. He didn't want to call Kat back, didn't want to hear Teli's excuse for disappearing without so much as a warning, but Kat's voice echoed in his ear with a sad, frustrated tone. The worried thought that something had forced Teli to disappear filtered through his mind. Shane pushed the though aside. After all, what could possibly have happened to Teli? Besides, it was easier to be upset at the situation than panicked over it. Shane took the phone away from his ear and glared at the number on the screen as he pushed the 'return call' button.

The phone rang in his ear three times. Just as Shane was about to hang up, the line was picked up.

"Hello?" A feminine voice asked, sounding out of breath.

"Kat?" Shane asked quickly. He heard a soft relieved sigh on the other end of the line.

"Finally. Thanks for calling back." Kat answered quickly. She sounded nervous. A brief moment of silence passed over the line.

"So, what was it you wanted to tell me about..." Shane started.

"Not on the phone." Kat cut him off, stress fully entering her voice.

"Where then?" Shane asked quickly, picking up on Kat's tone.

"Do you remember where her favorite spot to think was?" Kat asked, feeling a sudden pang of sadness.

"Of course." Shane answered, remembering when Teli had brought him up to show him her favorite spot among the rocks in the mountains.

"Be there ASAP." Kat said quickly. The phone clicked in Shane's ear and he glanced quizzically at the screen. He was no closer to learning anything about Teli, but Kat was freaked about something, that much he could tell.

Aliana felt the days go by in a blur. For the first time in her memory she didn't feel like riding or helping out in the barns. She was more content to wander aimlessly around her house than step out into the world where everything would remind her of Tye. Only once had a brief flash of anger caused her to throw a little framed picture of her and Tye full force into a wall. The shattering glass flew back at her, ripping into her hands. Aliana looked from her bleeding hands to the now-torn picture amidst the broken glass. Tears blurred her vision and she leaned back against the wall. A storm cloud unleashed its first ripple of thunder to drown out her sobs as Aliana crumpled to the floor, covering her face with bloody hands. She stayed there, letting the tears flow freely, and she eventually drifted off into a restless sleep.

Strange dreams followed her in sleep. A sweet smell danced under her nose as shadowy blurs moved silently about her. The picture of her and Tye floated hazily in front of her eyes but it seemed as if the picture had been torn in half, only Tye remaining. In the dream Aliana was lifted, elevated gently above the ground. The night swirled around her as if by magic she was suddenly outside and floating away from her home. A deeper sleep came upon her then and the shadowy figures and small flashes of headlights drifted back into the dream realm of her mind as full darkness finally settled behind her eyes.

Jondy was gone. Tye awoke to an empty front seat, with a set of instructions taped to the steering wheel. They had gotten the beat-up old car to the nearest town before it had sputtered and died once again. The last thing Tye remembered, before falling asleep in the back seat, was Jondy's mumbled expletive as she slammed the hood closed. And now she was gone and he was to make his way to Seattle.

Tye pocketed his instructions and stepped warily out of the old car. Dawn was just breaking on the misty horizon, casting a light purple haze over the sleepy little town. Tye shouldered his bag and quietly shut the car door. His keen eyes pierced through the mist that hung in the air as he scanned the area. Once assured that no one had seen him or been aware of his presence, Tye walked with purposeful steps toward the nearest parking lot.

Kat thought back briefly on her conversation with Shane.

_'You going to tell me what I'd like to know now?'_ Shane's voice echoed in Kat's memory. He had sounded hurt, and quietly angry.

_'She had to leave Shane, she had no choice.' Kat explained. _

'_Why Kat? Why would she just up and disappear?' He asked, glancing coldly from Kat to the woods beyond. 'I can't tell you that.' _ The scene continued to play through her mind. Kat was caught up in the memory, forgetting the world around her, wishing somehow she could have told him.

_'What can't you tell me?' Shane asked, searching for some clue, some explanation. _

'_Her tattoo...' Kat whispered, cutting herself off before any more slipped past. She wanted to tell him, didn't he have the right to know? Did she have the right to share this burden with someone? _

Something made Kat return her thoughts to her surroundings. Night had fallen; the bay window she was sitting in was now dark. Kat shrugged off the now-familiar paranoid prickle and returned to her previous thoughts.

_'What tattoo?' Shane asked, stepping towards her with sudden interest, as if he had just stumbled upon a clue. Kat unconsciously rubbed the back of her own neck, as if she could feel the brand of the barcode herself. 'Nothing, never mind.' Kat said quickly. 'Look, Shane. She asked me to say goodbye for her. I've done that. Now, don't look for her. Don't do anything. Just forget you ever knew her!' _

_Kat's voice cracked as she half sobbed the last line. She pushed roughly past Shane and ran away from him towards home. She glanced back only once. Shane was still standing, as if frozen in place, where Kat had left him._

'Why, Teli? Why you? Why did this have to happen? Why did I have to lose my best friend?' Kat thought miserably. 'I hope you're okay, wherever you are out there.' The worried thought passed through Kat's mind as tears threatened and she inhaled sharply to hold them back. In the small silence between breaths, Kat heard the familiar creaking of footsteps on the stairs.

Kat jumped into awareness, forgetting her earlier thoughts. Kat stood slowly, backing into a corner, listening. Ever so faint was the footstep that landed just outside her door. A scream rose in her throat as her door swung open and she became aware of a pair of cold eyes that stared unblinking at her. But Kat caught the scream in her throat, knowing it would be no use, she was alone. The cold eyes stepped closer, and a dark outline formed. Kat set her jaw. Teli had taught her a few things about self-defense; she wasn't giving in without a fight, no matter how desperate.

Kat watched, barely suppressing her panic as the form moved closer. Then, trying to take her attacker by surprise, Kat aimed a blind kick in the direction of the attacker's knee. Her foot connected with bone, and the cold eyes jumped back, wincing slightly. Kat knew she should strike again, before they had a chance to regroup. Panic finally gripped her as she lunged, aiming towards the now glaring eyes. But her fists and madly scratching nails met only air. Too fast, the figure had moved too fast. A heavy blow struck Kat in the back of her head. She tumbled forward, feeling herself be caught from falling by a strong, harsh grip. A hand was clamped over her nose a mouth, a sweet smelling cloth held securely below her nose. Kat arched her back, trying to evade the drugs effect, but she couldn't hold her breath forever. After only a shallow gasp for air, the sickly sweet smell of the cloth took its effect and everything went black.

It was raining in Seattle when Teli crossed through the last checkpoint and entered sector 9. Three whole days of traveling, stopping only for gas and nature's call. No sightseeing, no detours, no sleep, no food. She had been surviving on caffeine, adrenaline, and a single candy bar bought at three in the morning at a shady truck stop, running from every shadow and every set of headlights. Through this she had managed to ignore the harassment of catcalls and pat-downs at nearly all the checkpoints she had stumbled through. Still she pressed on. Her muscles ached and quivered from over-exertion and burned from lactic acid build-up. Her mind was hazy from lack of sleep and it was a fight to keep her vision clear. But now she was almost there.

Dark and rainy streets were all that welcomed Teli to Sector 9. A brief glance at a checkpoint map was all she had in her memory to guide her to Foggle Towers. It wasn't much, and in her mentally exhausted state, Teli found herself taking several wrong turns, ending up in dark alleys littered with trash, serving as shelter for the homeless bums who tapped broken metal pipes and rusted hunks of old car parts, threatening defense of their territory from Teli's invasion.

Teli was just about to give in to the exhaustion and collapse in a heap of wet clothes against the next wet dumpster when a flash of lightning illuminated the side of a building. It read 'Foggle Towers.' Teli closed her eyes briefly, overwhelmingly thankful that her search was over. She parked her bike under the eaves of a smaller building and made her way towards her destination.

'Penthouse level.' Teli told herself mentally. Some part of her brain knew better than to use the front doors and main elevator, but exhaustion clouded her mind and she could think of no other entrance. The PH button glowed softly yellow as Teli sank down, the beginning of a seizure shaking her lightly against the elevator walls. The easy upward motion of the elevator rocked Teli gently, lulling her towards sleep.

The elevator stopped and a buzzer rang, requesting admittance. Teli snapped briefly out of the haziness of her mind. Voices rang beyond the metal doors that had yet to slide open. Teli recognized Zane's low tones and registered the alarm that sounded in his words. The click of a loaded gun reached Teli's ears, causing her to rise clumsily to her feet in alarm. Yet she felt like a single step would throw her off balance and into a full-blown seizure. Her muscles were too tight and tired to hold her up for much longer.

Another buzzer sounded and the metal doors slowly slid open. Teli clumsily stepped into the hallway that opened before her. As predicted, exhaustion only allowed her the one step that brought her at last to her destination. Teli couldn't stop her body from crumpling to the floor; her wet hair fell across her face like a dark curtain as the first real ripples of a seizure shook her.

"Teli?" Zane's voice asked, sounding muffled as if from far away.

"Get some Tryptophan, now." Another voice said urgently as light footsteps rushed quickly to Teli's side. She was suddenly aware of a soft hand pushing the hair out of her face. Teli forced her eyes to open one last time before sleep devoured her brain. A face from her distant memory peered down at her, concerned.

"It's okay. You're safe, now." The voice said, sounding gentler then it had years ago. Teli used the last of her fading energy to reach up towards the memory in front of her to make sure she was real.

"Max?" Teli asked in a whisper so soft she barely heard it herself. Max took the shaking hand that reached for her and squeezed the fingers tightly.

"That's right." Max answered with a soft smile. Teli weakly smiled back as weariness finally took over her mind and she plummeted into a deep, dreamless sleep.


	25. Reunited

Tye walked, with bold steps, through the streets of Seattle. It was mid-afternoon and the morning's rain clouds had just blown away. People of all sorts mingled on the sidewalks, wandering in and out of cheap shops or detouring through the alleyways on more important missions. A kid on a bike zipped past Tye wearing a company jacket "Jam Pony. Ride With Pride." Tye felt sorry for the poor guy.

The map from the back of a sector cop's clipboard etched into Tye's memory, he unerringly wove his way through the crowd to Sector 9 and Foggle Towers. Tye stopped and stared at the tall building from across the street. This building had been his objective for four days, the target that all his thoughts centered on. And now he was here. Now he would learn the truth about everything.

As he stood there, his mind wandered briefly, wondering what Aliana was doing miles away from here. Catching himself in the act, he pushed the thought away with a pang. He had to focus. Without further hesitation, Tye crossed the street with purposeful steps. He entered the wide glass doors, keeping his head down and turned just slightly away from the security camera. The stairs were to his left, and he headed towards them.

It was a long and boring climb, involving picking a couple of locks to gain access to the roof, but he was rewarded when he reached the very top. There was a skylight. A pair of skylights, to be precise. Tye moved between each, peering cautiously into the richly furnished penthouse below. Interestingly enough, Tye observed that the glass was relatively easy to remove. One in particular seemed looser than the other, and as there were no alarms in sight, Tye went to work.

It was a 5.6 meter drop into the penthouse. Tye took one last look over the Seattle skyline, took a breath, and dropped silently down.

When Kat awoke, she found herself lying on a cot, shoved up against the cold wall of a strange room. It took another minute for the drugs to fully wear off and Kat to remember what happened. Her last memory, the glimpse of cold eyes staring, sent a shiver down her spine and Kat sat up quickly. Her head complained instantly at the action, so Kat obligingly moved slower as she swung her legs over the edge of the cot, biting back a groan. It wouldn't do any good to try anything else; her head had no qualms about throwing tantrums in the form of migraines. Yep, it was a good idea to stay friends with her head.

"I was wondering when you'd wake up." A feminine voice said coolly from across the room. Kat glanced at the speaker, startled by the presence of another person in the room. A young woman about her own age was leaning back into a corner, observing Kat. "How's the head?"

"Fine, thanks. What's it to you?" Kat snapped sarcastically, suspicious of this small offer of kindness. Her initial surprise of not being alone had worn off quickly, leaving in its place suspicion and mistrust of the little brunette. She glared, giving the girl an automatic once-over. Kat always sized up the competition when she happened to meet a new girl. It was one of those things every woman did, whether they realized it or not. If she had met this particular girl in a normal social situation, she would have despaired of picking up guys near her. Unless, of course, guys preferred blondes. Otherwise, it was hard to compete. Besides being pretty, the girl was short and petite, with the healthy, tanned look of someone who exercised regularly outdoors. Still, Kat was fairly certain she could take her if it came down to a fight. She couldn't possibly know as many dirty tricks Kat did.

Breaking off the staring contest they were having, the girl replied with a shrug. "Nothing, I guess." She turned her eyes towards the door, a reinforced steel monstrosity. "I just figured since you're in the same jam as me, we might have something in common."

"How do you figure?" Kat asked cynically. Her tone was still untrusting. The girl remained silent. Slowly, Kat rolled off the cot and walked to the door.

"Already tried that," she commented. "Door is pretty damn secure. So unless you've got some sort of super powers to beat it down with, I wouldn't waste the energy." Kat turned and stared at the girl, a sharp retort on her lips. Then Kat took a closer look at her companion. Her face had dried streaks from tears on it, her hair was dirty and snarled, and her hands looked pretty badly cut up. What had this girl gone through to get here? Kat glanced down at her own hands and moved her shoulders a little. Aside from a little soreness, she was unhurt. She was struck by the thought that the other girl would most likely only know about the headache slowly creeping up on Kat if she too had been drugged. And Kat was a believer in the saying 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.' Not that she was planning to trust her any farther than she could throw her yet.

"Look, let's not get off on the wrong foot. We're stuck here, we might as well get along." Kat said. The brunette looked at Kat for a moment, then nodded ever so slightly.

"My name's Aliana." She offered, the harsh defensive look on her face softening a bit.

"I'm Kat." The two girls looked at each other for a moment. "So, why are you in here?" Kat finally asked. Aliana clenched her jaw for a moment, and then took a deep breath.

"I assume because I know something about someone that I'm not supposed to know." She said simply. Kat was looking at her quizzically.

"Funny, same here." Kat replied. Again, neither said another word for a long moment. Kat walked away from the door and went back to sitting on her cot. A memory of Teli's voice floated through Kat's mind: _Who knows, these people were experts at cloning and genetic engineering. For all I know, there are four of me out there._ Kat looked back at Aliana. "What does the person you know look like?" She asked cautiously.

Aliana didn't want to answer the question, not to this person she barely knew. Besides, who knew how many listening devices were planted in their little cell? But Aliana had never been one for letting mysteries go unsolved, and she was smack in the middle of the biggest one she'd seen yet.

"Tall, dark tan skin, dark brown, almost black hair, green eyes." Aliana finally answered. Maybe by giving information, she would get some too. Kat just looked at her wide-eyed. "What?" Aliana finally asked.

"That description... it's the same as the person I know." Kat said, tripping over words in her shock. Was it possible Teli really did have a clone? At Kat's words, Aliana put the pieces together. She almost smiled.

"His sister. You must know his sister." She told Kat simply. Kat didn't seem to follow at first. "My friend. He said something about having a twin sister. He never knew about her until a few weeks ago. You must know her." Aliana explained. She almost laughed as Kat's expression went from confusion to understanding. She could almost see the pieces fit together in her mind. "Your friend didn't know she had a brother?" Aliana asked after a moment.

"If she didn't, she's in for one hell of a surprise!" Kat replied.

A presence literally dropped into Teli's mind, waking her from her much needed sleep. Like what she had felt right as she left the computer when getting out of the Manticore network, the presence pressed into her mind, a gentle urging that was not to be ignored. Teli slowly sat up and rolled out of the comfortable bed she found herself in. Her last memory was of lying crumpled on the floor in a seizing heap.

Teli padded softly to her door and cracked it open to peer out. She could see a little way into the hallway, but not enough. Slipping past the door, Teli stepped silently through the hall, stopping at the next corner. She peered around. A crouched figure was turning slowly, as if scanning his surroundings.

Tye immediately remembered his trip through the computer as he landed softly in the penthouse. Presence, a presence calling from behind him. He turned around. Green eyes met green eyes. Tye rose hesitantly.

A hundred thoughts, memories and emotions whirled through Teli's mind the moment their eyes met. She watched him stand, taking in the disconcertingly identical face of her twin. It felt so strange to see a male version of herself gazing back at her.

Neither twin said anything for a moment. Both stood frozen, staring. Memories seemed to flood into each mind of their childhood. Fighting drills, classrooms, pools, guns, and older soldiers. A woman with dark, curly hair leading them through the long hallways, leaping over the tall perimeter fence. A car ride, a man in a wheelchair, the same dark woman protecting them. Through it all they had been together. And now, after so long, they were together once again.

Teli opened her mouth to say something, and then shut it, uncertain of what to say. Another moment of indecision passed, then she broke into a run and crossed the little hallway that now seemed to put a million miles between her and her brother.

Tye stepped into Teli's embrace. He hugged her tight, relieved at last to have found his sister. Teli felt happy tears well up in her eyes. Finally, she had discovered a part that had been missing – her brother.

"Well Teli, Tye. I see you two have met." A friendly voice spoke behind them. The siblings turned towards Max, identical smiles on their faces.

"Whoa, Tye. When did you get here?" Jondy asked, sounding surprised as she rounded the corner and came up behind Max. Tye shrugged, it hadn't been long.

"Who's here?" Zane asked, sounding slightly guarded, as he joined the group.

"Tye decided to drop in." Max replied, glancing up at the skylight with a smile. She briefly wondered how many times she had used that very skylight for her own entrance purposes. Zane glanced between the two twins, glad to see that Teli looked much recovered since her rough entrance the night before.

"Teli and Tye. How on earth did you come up with those names, Maxie?" Zane asked, breaking the moment of silence.

"Lion," Max replied, indicating towards Tye, "and lamb." She nodded towards Teli. "It's an old Native American language. Plus, I thought T would be the appropriate first letter." Max finished, glancing almost sadly towards Jondy, who almost imperceptibly nodded. If Zane noticed, he didn't react.

"Why do you think we didn't come up with matching names then, huh?" Zane asked after a beat, surprising Teli with his light-hearted, almost teasing tone. Jondy snorted.

"Matching names with you?" She shot out, teasing in her facetious way.

"Oh come on, you could be... Zanita." Zane replied brightly. Jondy raised a skeptical eyebrow. Teli and Tye exchanged a glance; they were used to the tough, cold exterior of a soldier in Zane and Jondy, and neither had seen this kind of comfortable banter in them before. They both fought back snickers at the look on Jondy's face, faced with a cherubically innocent Zane.

"Gosh, I'll have to remember that next time I fill out my tax forms." Jondy replied, sarcasm dripping from her words.

"I think it suits you." Zane replied, pretending to take her literally. Jondy just glared back. Max glanced between the two, then looked at Teli and Tye, a half grin on her face.

"Are ya sure you're happy to be reunited? 'Cause I'm not sure I'd be wanting to claim these two as my siblings..." Zane and Jondy simultaneously punched Max in opposite shoulders; she winced. Teli and Tye exchanged an amused glance and laughed.


	26. Answers

The twins were gathered in the penthouse living room, seated on the comfortable couch. Max had sent Zane and Jondy out on errands. There were still loose ends she was concerned about and she needed all possible information. So Teli and Tye waited for her, the view of the skyline made brilliant by the noon sun.

Teli was fiddling with the coasters on the coffee table with a mindless intensity, concentrating on pushing them around to make different patterns. Tye rose and walked over to gaze out the window, amazed at the different perspective a little height could give. From this vantage point, the city looked nothing like the run-down dump he had passed through only hours before.

Tye looked over at Teli as she continued playing with the coasters in front of her. He was dying to ask her about what her life had been like before the recent events, but kept hesitating. He had the feeling she was trying to avoid thinking about the people she had left behind, which he could understand. After all, he was doing exactly the same thing. If he slipped, and started to think about home, his parents, Aliana. . . Tye turned abruptly back to the window, concentrating once again on what was taking Max so long.

"What?" Teli asked as if she had misheard something. Tye turned back towards her, looking mildly confused.

"I didn't say anything." He stated. Teli looked almost disappointed.

"That's odd." Teli replied slowly. "I could've sworn you said something, or were about to ask a question." Tye shook his head in the negative. "Oh, well," She said with a small shrug, returning to her coaster patterns. They should be talking, but there were things they both needed to know before they could fully open up. Though, from the moment Teli had seen her brother, she had felt like even though they had spent years apart, she still knew him well. Teli looked up once more. Her brother's eyes were again focused on the window.

"Yes, I'm sure." Tye replied, not looking away from the skyline. Teli shut her mouth, the words 'are you sure' not spoken. She hadn't even had a chance to ask them. He must've expected her to ask, she concluded. Maybe he'd had brothers or sisters back where he had lived and knew how to deal with questions before they were asked. Brian had always managed to ask every question he could come up with just to aggravate her, Teli remembered sadly. She swallowed the lump in her throat, focusing on placing the last coaster just so on the table in front of her.

"I wonder what's taking Max." Teli mumbled, settling back into the couch cushions. Tye shrugged in sympathetic silence, glancing anxiously towards the hall. They both wanted answers, and had come far to get them.

"She's right here." A voice called from the next room. Teli smiled at the older woman's casual use of her heightened hearing. Teli still hadn't quite gotten used to it. Max stepped into the living room, a soft smile on her face. As she sat down across from them, the twins watched a small shadow of worry fade from her eyes. Though a slight nervousness remained.

Max looked at Teli and Tye for a moment. She had a lot to tell them, and not all of it was going to be easy to hear, but they had been kept in the dark for long enough. The time had come for them to learn the answers.

"So, where would you guys like me to start?" Max asked softly, taking a deep breath. The twins looked at one another, each thinking the same thing: Manticore. It rang like a spoken word between them, though neither said it aloud. Max waited patiently, sorting all her memories and preparing for a long explanation. Tye looked back to her first.

"Manticore." He said simply. "What was it and what happened to it?" Teli nodded, affirming the words her brother spoke. Though they both knew some facts about Manticore, both wanted to understand it in full. Max pursed her lips for a moment, and then nodded slowly.

"Okay. Manticore." She paused, unsure of where to start. "Well, as you may or may not have figured out, Manticore was a government-funded facility that specialized in genetic engineering. They were creating soldiers, transgenic super soldiers. We were designed to be faster, stronger, and more intelligent then any other soldiers in the world. Each of us is worth millions to the right bidder." Max paused for a moment. Both Teli and Tye were listening intently, but nothing had seemed a surprise to them yet.

"Manticore was on its way to the top force in the American military. But then two things happened in 2009. First, 12 X5s, their proudest achievement, escaped. Zane, Jondy and I were a part of that unit that escaped. We've lived most of our lives on the run, afraid of going back to the nightmare that was Manticore. Then, the Pulse hit. National chaos, destroyed computers, all the wealth of this country swallow down in one disastrous gulp. Manticore and its funding was shoved onto the back burner. They were given enough to survive, enough to produce a few X6s, but nothing near what they had been given before. Needless to say, the Pulse helped us escape for good, and for a long time, none of the escaped X5s were caught." A shadow of sorrow crossed Max's face. Faces flashed before her eyes; Brin, Ben, Tinga, Zack... Max shook the memory away and continued on.

"Later, in 2019, Manticore's chain of command was disrupted. Elizabeth Renfro replaced the director, Donald Lydecker, whom we had run from for half our lives. We were tired of running by that point, Zack and I, and I'm sure many of the others. Four of us went in to take Manticore down. We went in and blew up their DNA lab, hoping that this act would cripple Manticore permanently. But it didn't, and Zack and I were taken by our enemy." Again, Max cut her words short. Images of that mission flashed before her eyes, the sound of her heartbeat seemed to echo in her mind.

"What happened then?" Teli asked quietly, sensing that Max needed to be pulled back into the present, out of the darkness that seemed to cloud over her eyes. "Why didn't it work?" Max shook her head and smiled softly at Teli.

"Well, I spent the next six months in Manticore, believing Zack to be dead. We were all shipped from the Wyoming facility to the Seattle facility, seemed that was their original sight anyway. In the end, Renfro came to trust me, or rather, she had to trust me, I was the only one who knew who and where Eyes Only was." Max paused, seeing the surprised looks.

"Eyes Only?" They both asked in sync. Max smiled.

"That's another story, which, I'm sure we'll get to next time." The twins nodded and Max continued. "Anyway, to shorted the story a little, Renfro sent me out to kill Eyes Only, instead I turned around and let everyone out when they tried to incinerate their own place of operations."

"So Manticore doesn't exist anymore?" Tye asked, unclear as to why they would destroy the building and everyone in it.

"The building is gone, the idea is mostly dead. But Renfro survived, how I'm not sure, she was shot right in front of me. But... She gathered a few personal staff, computers, and a few loyal soldier and took her pet project underground." Max looked from twin to twin, wondering if they followed.

"Pet project?" Teli asked, glancing from Max to Tye and back. The pieces were falling into place. Max nodded slowly.

"Us?" Tye asked, half shocked, looking quickly to Teli, a protective expression crossed his face. Max nodded again. The sun was lowering in the sky, shedding a golden light into the room, lighting the faces of the little group. For a while, no one spoke.

"Why us?" Teli finally ventured. She knew it was the question in the front of Tye's mind as well. Max smiled sadly, looking between Teli and Tye.

"Because of your mother." Max answered slowly. Both twins looked directly into her eyes, she could almost hear their pleas to know of her. "Her name was Tinga." Max started with a slow breath. "She was my older sister. Escaped with us in '09, but through an ugly twist of fate she traded her freedom for the freedom of her son, whom Lydecker had infected with nanocytes." Max watched, as their eyes grew large. "Yes, you have a brother, well, a half brother. His name is Case. But he's not quite like you, he wasn't trained to be a soldier, and he's half human, we don't fully know what he inherited from Tinga except that he has a very high level of intelligence." Max smiled slightly at the twins' shocked and eager expression, and then continued. "When Manticore discovered this Tinga became a prime target. Never before had crosses between human and X5 produced such a child. Something in Tinga's DNA allowed her to pass on her traits to her children." Max glanced from Tye to Teli. There was no question of their inheritance, the question wasn't if they had Tinga's power, it was what had been supplemented to it.

"So, our mother traded her freedom for the life of Case, they took her in and did experiments on her which resulted in us?" Tye asked, summing it all up as best he could. Max smiled sadly, if only it was that easy. The image of Tinga suspended lifeless, in greenish liquid haunted her mind.

"Lydecker thought she'd escaped, but she hadn't, Renfro had her. Renfro had her tested and probed until she was worn out. Zack and I didn't find her until it was too late." Max's voice broke; a tear welled up in her eye. "She died. I didn't get to her in time..." She broke off and starred down at the carpet. The twins exchanged a glance, unsure of how to sympathize. After a moment, Max pulled herself back together and continued.

"But Renfro learned a lot from her, enough to create you two, but only you two." Silence filled the room as Max dealt with lingering shards of the still painful memory. Teli glanced at Tye, then rose slowly and stepped around the coffee table to Max. She knelt beside her chair and took her hand.

"But you saved us, I remember. Tells us how you found us Max." Teli whispered. Tye nodded from the couch, eager to fill in the blank places in his memory. Slowly, Max nodded, and took a breath before she continued.

"Renfro showed me two test tubes when I was first back at Manticore. That's how I first found out. When I got out, letting everyone else out in the process, I thought Renfro was dead and that nothing had come of those test tubes. But I eventually discovered that this wasn't true. You were four years old when I finally found out about you. Renfro must've taken whatever surrogate carried you with her when she escaped and you two were born in June of 2020. From there you were trained like any Manticore soldier, Renfro wouldn't change a routine that had worked so well before. You were to be the foundation on which she built her empire. Who knows what her final intentions were, or are."

"And then you came for us, saved us and put us in the homes we grew up in." Tye finished. Max nodded, meeting Tye's grave eyes.. "But, then why make us forget what we were, and why did you separate us?" He asked, almost sharply. This was an important point to Tye, something he wanted to understand clearly.

"I believe in family, Tye." Max explained. "I didn't want to separate you. But facts were that you two were the sole focus of Renfro and her ambitions. If I had left you together the probability that news of a pair of adopted twins with dark hair, tan skin, and green eyes would've reached her, and reached her quickly. I couldn't risk that. Apart you blended in, you were safer. And I knew someday the time would come when I would need to call you back, as I have done this summer, and then you would be reunited again." Max's eyes starred into Tye's, willing him to understand. Tye held the contact for a moment, then looked down.

"But the memories, how did you make us forget everything?" Teli asked from where she now sat, on the floor near Max.

"Manticore taught you many things Teli," Max answered, softly smiling down at her, "one of them was how to forget information. Zack used it once, to protect the X5s, I used it to protect you. I simply ordered you to go through the process that would push all prior things into forgetfulness. Mind you, you did not fully forget, those memories are still in your mind, as I'm sure you've discovered, but by making you forget I thought I was giving you the chance at a normal life. Something we never really had." The sun was now setting behind the Seattle skyline. Tye gazed into its harsh orange light, letting the answers absorb into his mind. Nothing had shocked him, but all the same, it was a lot to learn in one afternoon. Teli tucked her knees up under her chin and glanced briefly out the window. At least it all made sense now, or mostly. The trio passed a few minutes in silence.

A light knock on the doorframe interrupted their thought processes. A gentle, male voice spoke to them; his eyes glanced between Teli and Tye, and then settled warmly on Max.

"Dinner is ready, if you guys are done in here." He said softly. Max looked up and immediately smiled.

"Thanks Logan, we'll be there in a minute." Teli watched Logan shoot Max a concerned look, to which she responded with a smile and a slight shrug. At that moment the doorbell rang and without waiting for a response, Zane entered followed by Jondy. Max rose quickly and looked towards the door.

"Hello, hello. We're back from our day long tramp around the city..." Zane called in a rough tone as he entered. Jondy shook her head, almost laughing as her brother made a beeline for the food. Max caught Jondy's eyes with a questioning look. Jondy's expression went blank and she shook her head ever so slightly. Max nodded and turned back to the twins.

"You guys ready to eat?" Max asked, offering her hand out to help Teli up. They both nodded, Teli accepted the hand and rose. Then the twins followed Max, and their noses, to their first dinner together in 11 years.


	27. Thought Process

Aliana felt rough hands shove her back into the now familiar cell. The door slammed behind her and she stood, swaying slightly, in the empty room. A few wobbly steps brought her to one of the two cots where she collapsed down onto the poor excuse for a mattress. The world still swam before her eyes. Shapes were blurry and the small amount of light that filtered in seemed dim and yet solid, as if it had taken an actual form. Aliana closed her eyes. Dizziness raked her brain. The sudden lose of equilibrium made her stomach lurch and tighten. Aliana forced her eyes back open, trying to focus on a solid point on the wall while taking deep breaths.

The drugs they had pumped into her veins slowly wore off. The world stabilized and Aliana could close her eyes without the urge to vomit. The dizziness left her brain, leaving behind a throbbing pain. Massaging her temples helped a little, but the second she stopped the pain flooded back. Sleep was impossible; the only think she could do was wait for Kat's return, while trying to understand what had happened her. All she could remember was needles, lots of shouting people and a drugged sense of confusion.

Teli had settled back onto the couch and was watching some TV program that took little or no effort to understand. It was her little escape, a way of not have to think about Kat, Shane, her family, and all she had left behind. In the back of her mind, Teli knew she was putting off thoughts that would eventually have to be dealt with, but just then, she didn't feel like it was quite that time yet.

It was their second day at the Penthouse, she and Tye could sense that Max and the others were waiting for something, a piece of information, extra aid, or the right conditions, before another move was made. At the moment, Max had gone with Jondy and Zane and Logan was off talking to a source. They were alone for the afternoon, left to their own devices, granted they didn't go far.

Tye paced back and forth in front of the window. After a week of running it felt almost wrong to spend two whole days idle. He didn't like having to stay in the Penthouse, but he hadn't argued either. It would be a shame to get caught wandering around Seattle after they had come so far.

But mostly Tye's thoughts turned to Aliana. He had pushed all thoughts of her to the back of his mind during his journey to Seattle, but now memories came flooding back. Especially the memory of their last few moments together.

"You're going to wear the soles off your feet if you keep pacing like that." Teli's playful tone broke into his thought. "Not to mention drive me crazy." Tye glanced at his sister; she had a light smile on her face, indicating that she was not, in fact, going to be driven crazy. Tye shrugged and smiled back.

"Sorry, it's a habit I picked up at the track." He explained.

"Tell me about the track, I've never been to one." Teli replied, curious. Tye thought for a moment, then made his way over to where Teli was sitting.

"Well, my parents breed and train thoroughbreds to race. We'd take our whole string, usually about 12 horses, to the main track a week or so before a big race weekend. We'd run the horses on the new track a few times, get them used to it and all, get them settled in their new stalls, all that stuff that keeps their brains settled before they have to race." Tye explain. The picture was still crystal clear in his mind, all the people, all the horses, and the energized atmosphere.

"And what was race day like?" Teli asked, flicking the off button for the TV. She was finally learning about her brother's life. It was time to get caught up. Tye laughed.

"On race day you would see the craziest things! Women with huge blue and green, sometimes yellow or pink hats. Men in fancy tuxedos, or suits with bright colored ties. Eccentric people, odd couples, crazy accents, you name it." He finished with a grin, starring off at a colorful memory.

"Sounds like a fun place to be." Teli commented, "you'll have to take me there someday." Tye looked up quickly at the comment.

"I will." He said, and felt certain that someday he actually would. "Now, what about you?" He asked. Teli smiled and leaned back into the couch cushions, she'd be expecting the question.

"Well, nothing as exciting as a race track. I mostly hang out with my friend Kat. We did a lot of biking, hiked through the mountains, and did some boating on the lake. That sorta thing." Teli finished with a small wave of her hand and a smile.

"Sounds like a good time." Tye replied with a small nod.

"Yeah, good times..." Teli's voice trailed off and they lapsed into a moment of thoughtful silence.

After a moment Teli glanced over at Tye, he was gazing thoughtfully at the carpet beneath their feet, obviously caught in some memory. Teli opened her mouth to ask him more about his prior life, but then decided to wait, and looked away.

"What?" Tye asked, glancing up from a memory of Aliana. Teli looked quickly back towards him.

"I... didn't say anything." She replied, confused.

"Oh, that's odd. I could've sworn you did. Asked a question or something like that." Tye replied, though still half him mind was on its previous thought. He glanced up at Teli briefly, she looked puzzled.

"Who is Aliana?" Teli asked, sounding puzzled. Tye glanced up sharply.

"How did you know that name?" He asked quickly. He had been careful not to say it; there was no way Teli could know.

"You just said it." Teli explained. The name had wrung like a spoken word in her mind, yet she could've sworn Tye hadn't moved his mouth.

"No, no. There is no way I just said her name. I wouldn't. It's exposure for her. So, how did you know that name?" Tye's tone had become increasingly stern as he spoke, unsuccessfully hiding his near panicked worry.

"Whoa, whoa. Breath Tye." Teli reached out and put a hand on her brother's shoulder. Tye clenched his jaw and looked away, but seemed to otherwise relax. "Okay, now, you're sure you didn't say her name, not even a whisper?" Teli asked.

"Yeah." Tye replied, looking back up. _But I thought it_. He told himself mentally.

"You thought it?" Teli replied, things were beginning to click. Once again she had heard him speak, but had not seen his mouth move at all. Tye's eyes widened as the pieces clicked together. He pursed both lips together and looked directly at his sister.

_Teli? Are you getting this?_ Tye concentrated on making the thought clear and precise. Teli tilted her head, as if trying to hear something. She opened her mouth to reply, and then shut it quickly.

_Yeah, but it's kinda...fuzzy._ Her thought rang clear in Tye's mind. He smiled.

_Neat little trick we've got here._ Tye thought, half to himself. Teli laughed.

_Came in loud and clear that time. Maybe you were trying too hard the first time._ Tye laughed as well.

"How do you suppose it works though?" Teli asked, her real voice now seemed to ring loudly in the room. Tye shrugged, then had a thought.

"Look away, so I can't even see your eyes." He said quickly. Teli turned around. Tye thought hard, then remembering that didn't work, relaxed and simple thought her name. She didn't respond. "Okay, now turn so I can just see... like the corner of your eye." Teli turned half way.

"I got something that time, but it was unclear." Teli replied, turning all the way back.

"So obviously it depends on eye contact. Seems all little odd though, I mean, if we were to be soldiers then eye contact isn't always going to be possible on a mission." Tye wondered out loud.

"Well, maybe they were still in the experimental stages." Teli hypothesized. "That would explain why it only works between us and why it's limited." At that moment there was a knock at the door. Both twins jumped up and turned towards the door as it slowly swung open.

A tall man with dark blonde hair walked through the door. He looked to be about Zane's age, yet had a more relaxed persona about him. He quickly scanned the room, stopping when his gaze fell on Teli and Tye.

"Hey guys." He started, sounding friendly enough. They didn't respond. "Well, um... is Max around?" He asked, glancing down a hallway.

"She's not around right now." Tye replied, taking a step towards the newcomer. The man glanced back at Tye and Teli who now stood a little behind her brother.

"Eh... well, when she or Logan comes back, could ya tell 'em Alec stopped by? I've got some info they might want." He turned, a half grin on his confident face and walked out the door. The lock click and both twins breath again.

"Well, that was ... interesting." Teli said, still puzzling at the closed door. Tye turned towards her.

_Yeah, it was..._ He echoed.

_Dear Angel, _

_Wow, there is a lot to catch up on! To think that the last time I wrote in here I had only just left Tahoe. Well, a lot has happened in the past few days. I traveled with Zane until we reached San Francisco. Then I was on my own. That was an eye opening experience! A little scary at first. All right, a lot scary. But... I managed. Somehow. The first glitch came when I stupidly tried to use the computer I had acquired (another interesting story, I'll save that for later. Though, I did almost feel bad for the poor guy I took it from ... oh well.) Anyway, I had a real live, fully functional Manticore soldier after me. Let me tell you, racing over building tops and dogging bullets is not my idea of a fun time! Oh, and the train! Yeah, jumped onto a moving train, that didn't get that soldier off my tail so I had to leap off that, fly through a glass window... it was nuts. But, it worked! Thank you Zane for all my training._

_Anyway, now I'm in Seattle. I arrived at the Penthouse in a rather poor condition. Seizures and exhaustion don't mix real well. Okay, so I didn't play it all that smart the last few days. I was running, scared I was still being followed by that damn black shadow of a soldier! I'm sure you can understand. It was... like waking up in a memory to see Max again, you again. And it's a relief to finally have answers to so many questions. Though, the news about my real mother and my other half brother came as quite a shock. I guess all I can do now is hope that I'll meet Case someday, maybe he can tell me what she was like. It was obviously a painful memory for Max. Tinga. It's a beautiful name._

_Well, on a less sad note... (I've decided writing about sad things only makes me sadder, so forgive me if I'm brief in those areas.) Tye and I discovered we have a neat little trick. It's some sort of telepathy. It was quite confusing at first. I'd think he was saying something when he wasn't and visa versa. It took the name 'Aliana' (I still haven't gotten that story from Tye yet! But I'll be working on it... ï _


	28. Tracing

Max and the others walked in a few hours after the twins' latest discovery. Logan made a bee line for him computer room, while the three X5s dispersed – Jondy followed Logan, Zane headed for the kitchen, and Max walked towards Teli and Tye.

_Should we tell her?_ Teli asked with a quick glance at her brother.

_Not quite yet._ He answered. Teli looked back to Max and smiled, scooting over on the couch so she would have a place to sit down.

"Hey guys." Max started, plopping down next to Teli. "You two have a long day?" She asked, sounding empathetic. Both twins nodded.

"It's... not exactly easy to stay in one place after almost a week of traveling." Teli explain. Tye backed her up with a definite nod.

"Yeah, I believe it. Sorry about that." Max replied, a sympathetic expression on her face. "Though, you shouldn't have to hang out here too much longer, I promise. If nothing else, I'll take you on the grand tour of Seattle." She said with a little laugh, "though, there isn't all that much to see." Teli liked the idea of the tour; her brief view of Seattle on the way was a rather blurred memory, probably due to the exhausted state she'd been in at the time. Tye rather agreed with Max's last comment about Seattle, he remembered quite vividly the condition on the streets. Though, a tour could be beneficial, he'd get a better lay of the city.

"Oh hey, you guys had a visitor today." Teli said, suddenly remembering the strange encounter. Max turned sharply towards Teli.

"A visitor?" She asked cautiously. Teli nodded.

"Yeah, name's Alec." Tye offered. "He said to tell you he had some info for you and Logan." He finished. Max relaxed, but raised an eyebrow.

"Alec huh? Should've known he'd come up with something sooner then expected." She said with a laugh. "Let me guess, he came in here all self assured acting like he owned the place?"

"That's about right." Teli answered. Max laughed again.

"Good to know some things never change." She said. Teli and Tye both got the impression that this Alec character would be an interesting, if not entertaining person to know.

"Hey guys, come in here a sec, I think we've found something." Jondy called from the computer room. Max, Teli, and Tye rose and made their way over. Logan was sitting at the computer, typing furiously while screens flashed across the monitor.

"What is it?" Max asked, leaning over Logan's shoulder and watching the screens wiz by. Logan's fingers didn't even slow down.

"We found a lot of recent activity on the Manticore database. Either someone hacked into it and took over the controls or the Wyoming facility is back in use." Jondy replied, pointing at the different screens.

"It's unlikely that someone is actually using that facility again, it'd just be too risky since the NSA took over the controls and shut the place down. Not to mention that most of the computers were probably destroyed." Logan explained. "So, my guess is that they're somewhere in the vicinity and have managed to tap into the network, if not fully take it over."

"And you're trying to hack into their system and figure out where they are." Teli ventured. Jondy shot a surprised glance in her direction.

"That's right," Logan offered. "But so far they've run me through a bunch of loop... Damn it!" His fingers stopped typing. A box flashed on his screen. Connection Lost.

A collective groan went around the three adults in the room. Starting over was going to be a frustrating task. Teli glanced quickly at Tye.

_Maybe there is a way we can help without having to leave this place._ She offered, touching the sliver bracelet on her left wrist. Tye nodded and broke the eye contact.

"Logan," Tye started. "Mind if we give it a try?" He couldn't help the confident half smile that tugged at his mouth. Logan glanced from Tye to Teli and back, then up at Jondy who shrugged.

"Let them try Logan." Max spoke up, seeing his hesitation. "They seem to have some confidence in their ability, maybe they have some training we don't know about." Logan looked about to protest, then shrugged and pushed his chair back away from the desk.

"Okay. Have at it." He said, waving them almost reluctantly towards the desk.

"Well, first we're going to need a couple things. Like two splitters and some extra cable lines." Teli replied, stepping towards the desk. Logan opened the lowest draw in one of his filing cabinets; it was filled with everything they could possibly need. Teli shot a glance at Tye.

"Lets do it." Her twin replied with a grin. Jondy and Logan looked on curiously while Teli disconnected and re-connected wires, plugging them into splitters and back into the computer until she and Tye were left with two ends of cable plugged in a one end, and not at another.

"Ready?" Teli asked Tye. Tye grabbed an extra chair and sat down next to Teli. Typing a few commands onto the keyboard, he re-established a connection.

"Ready." He replied, reaching for one of the extra cables.

"Whoa, whoa. Just a sec." Jondy intervened. "I'd like to know just what you two are planning before you dive into this." Tye turned and looked at her.

"Jondy... there's no real way of explaining it to you, you're... just going to have to watch." Tye tried to explain.

"Don't worry," Teli jumped in, "we know how to make sure we're not being traced and we'll be able to find out what you're looking for, for the most part we'll follow the path you already made, Logan." She explained further. Jondy and Logan exchanged a glance, Logan shrugged, looking unconvinced, but curious. Jondy nodded to the twins.

"Well, get on with it." Max said with a smile. "I want to see this new trick you two have worked up." At that Teli pulled off the silver bracelet and Tye undid his watch. Neither saw Jondy's eyes get huge as they plugged the extra cable lines into their wrist outlets.

Teli and Tye glanced at each other, took a deep breath in sync and closed their eyes.

The computer world opened in their minds. They both immediately recognized the complexity of the Logan's computer, it was much more advanced they anything they had been able to practice on, at least, in recent memory.

Teli found herself on what would best be described as a junction or crossroads area. Many thousands of pathways met and traveled on from this spot. To Teli's amazement she found she actually had a physical form in this place, instead of being invisible, she could see her hands in front of her and her feet below her, though it was a computerized image.

_Tye? Where are you?_ Teli called out mentally, wondering if their telepathy worked in this place as well.

_Right here._ He answered from behind her. Teli turned towards him and both realized quickly that their telepathy was much more advanced within the computer, eye contact was not needed.

Tye also had a physical form, appearing to Teli as a computerize image of himself. _We've got to follow Logan's trail before it gets lost in other commands. Lets go._ Teli nodded and followed Tye as he moved off towards the center of the conjunction.

_There._ She pointed. Logan's path appeared to them as lighted strip, no doubt because countless energy particles had so recently traveled down it. They quickly jumped onto the path and moved off.

* * *

To Max and the other, Teli and Tye appeared to be asleep, except for some slight fluttering of their eyelids. Logan watched the computer screen intently. New windows popped up and flashed by rapidly, all in the same sequence as he had done, only much faster.

* * *

The twins moved swiftly along, following the lighted path. They passed through doorways, over passages and under bridges. Each knew that these doorways and such were supposed to be blocking their path, but Logan's earlier run had hacked through these barriers making their going much easier.

_The path is growing dimmer Tye._ Teli called as Tye passed quickly in front of her and through yet another doorway. Tye glanced back and nodded.

_And the barriers are re-setting themselves. We'll have to move quickly._ The door they had just past through shut with a click behind them. They ran on, following the slowly dimming path.

* * *

"They're getting real close to where I was cut off before." Logan commented. Jondy nodded, Max put a hand on each of the twin's shoulders.

The path took them through a narrow tunnel, dark except for their lighted way. They went single file, Tye's longer strides carried him a little in front. Their footsteps fell on a smooth surface and their outstretched fingers touched cool, smooth walls.

An opening appeared ahead of them. An orange, flickering glow lighted the walls, eating up the lighted path they followed. The twins moved on towards the light. But when they reached the end, they were forced to pull up short.

_Well, now we know what broke Logan's connection._ Teli said, gazing at the sudden end their path came to. Tye nodded and scanned the firewall in front of them. Teli's thoughts jumped back to the firewall she had gotten through on her last visit to the Manticore sight, only the one in front of her now was much brighter and thus much stronger.

Tye looked around him, trying to find a tool of some sort with which to test the wall. The tunnel behind them had been smooth walled, but it was most likely a pathway under some other obstacle. If they could find that, they could activate a warning in the wrong spot.

_We need to make some sort of diversion. If the wall thinks there's a hacker it'll concentrate in one area and we can slip under it at a weak spot._ Tye communicated. Teli nodded in agreement, turning to scan the walls around them.

Above their heads there appeared to be a veil of wires that skirted around the edge of the firewall. A few of them glowed with energy that passed through them. Teli pointed upwards. Tye followed her glance and nodded.

Tye spotted Teli as she scaled the wall near the entrance to the tunnel. Catching a hold of some of the stronger wires, Teli swung out away from the wall, making her way towards a junction of the active wires. Tye stayed below her. At the junction of wires Teli carefully detached a main wire. With a glance down towards Tye she took a hold of the now free wires and swung down, using her weight to pull the wires away from the ceiling.

Teli aimed the swing towards the firewall, gathering momentum. Just as the heat of the wall touched her face, Teli let go, dropping in a front flip towards the ground. Tye spotted her landing, keeping one eye on the wire. As hoped, the firewall seemed to grab a hold of the wire and flames gathered strongly around it. Teli and Tye ran back parallel to the wall and watched for an opening. A small lessening of the orange glow appeared close to the ground and instantly the twins threw themselves down and rolled through.

Heat seared around them and they rolled faster trying to get through. The flames seemed to get stronger, gathering around this new break. Just as the hot orange glow concentrated around them, they broke through. They sat up slowly, watching the hot glow turn red as if in anger that someone had broken through.

Teli turned from the firewall first. The image that met her eyes was nothing like the passageways and tunnels they had just journeyed through. Instead a little city appeared before their eyes. A long path stretched before them, leading towards the main gate. The landscape around the city was much like a valley complete with a tiny stream that ran a little ways off the main path.

_Some pretty fancy programming here._ Teli said as she looked around. Tye had turned and was scanning as well.

_This was designed for people like us, people who can enter this world. It's just another block, yet this time more complicated._ Tye replied, turning his eyes towards the city gate.

Then it's really just an image for us to get lost in. A diversion. We must be just within the Manticore sight, only they would have a need for this kind of programming, right? Teli asked, looking for the way through. Tye nodded his agreement. 

_The gate can't be the real gate. I'm sure that it's just an alarm._ He said thoughtfully, moving down the path a ways. _There's another path around the city and out of the valley._ He offered, indicating towards the smaller path. Teli shook her head.

_Still too easy. Plus, this place is giving me an odd sense of déjà vu – I wish I could actually remember where to go!_ Teli replied, frustrated with the answer that hovered just out of her reach. Her keen eyes searched the digital world in front of her. The little stream flowed past in an easy calm, falling quickly down a little waterfall and disappearing around a bend. Teli's eyes came back to the waterfall. And then it clicked.

_The waterfall. Tye, the path is under the waterfall!_ She said with a rush, running past Tye towards the pool that gathered at the base of the fall. Teli didn't hesitate when she reached the pool's edge; with a light spring she dove down, making her body streamlined, racing deeper and deeper. She vaguely heard Tye's splash as he followed. Her fingers touched a smooth surface. Searching quickly along it's surface Teli's hand found a handle, it turned easily and Teli passed through the small door. Behind it was another tunnel. Teli swam quickly pushing against the tunnel walls. An opening appeared above her, and she surfaced quickly.

Teli climbed out of the pool and helped Tye out as he surfaced just after her. The moment Tye fully left the water the pool dried up and disappeared. All traces of water vanished from their clothes and hair.

Teli and Tye found themselves in the middle of large, white room. The walls were lined with stripes of glowing wires, the floor and ceiling shimmered with energy as information flowed from one point to another. The twins exchanged a grinning glance.

_We're in._ They both echoed.

* * *

"How the hell did they do that?!" Jondy exclaimed. "They got right into the central database." She explained, still sounding shocked.

Logan immediately started typing and downloading information. Jondy's eyes quickly scanned the data that filed past on the screen, pointing to vital windows and important information. It was both a shock and a relief to see this screen. That the twins had actually made it in was impressive, even though both still appeared to be asleep in their chairs. The screen had gone blank for a few minutes and a box had flashed indicating an overload in information. Then suddenly this main sight had appeared, and they were working hard to get the information they needed.

* * *

_We need a trace program, figure out where these people are working from._ Teli said quickly. Tye nodded and stepped towards the wall in front of them.

_I'll get the trace working. You see what else we can pull up._ He replied quickly. Though neither twin in recent memory had entered such a place, both instinctively knew how to operate and control the information around them.

Tye stepped up to a wall and scanned the information passing before him. His brain automatically translated the digital code. He moved to the next well, adjusting his placing along the wall briefly, then reached both hands out and lightly touched the wall. A tracing program immediately opened like a liquid screen in front of him. Tye moved his fingers slightly, controlling the operation of the trace program, helping it along as it journey along the connection path of the hackers.

Teli watched her brother for a moment, and then moved off along the walls, scanning and interpreting the information in front of her. Details of the Manticore operation flashed by, information about it's founding, it's operations, and it's destruction. Teli moved on to a more active part of the wall.

A familiar sense pulled Teli towards the far corner. Teli reached out and placed a hand on the wall. A screen popped up in front of her. Brain wave patterns flowed across the screen. Teli moved her hand slightly. A heart monitor screen appeared. Teli felt her own heart rate increase as the monitor's peaks and valleys flashed by. Teli shifted again, tapping into a video monitor system.

A blue medical room appeared on the screen. The back of a blonde woman's head blocked the face of a patient, sitting in a chair. Teli shifted a finger, changing the angle of the camera. The woman was yelling. A red laser shone just in front of her. Teli shifted again. The face of the patient appeared, fully focused. And Teli screamed.

"It's Kat. Oh God, they have Kat!"


	29. Energy and Aspirin

Kat's mind was so heavily drugged that all her thoughts were fuzzy and incomplete. She was only dimly aware of the horrors that surrounded her. Pain, red pain seared her left eye. Harsh shouts and angry yells assaulted her ears. Another, softer voice replied in a monotone, sounding shockingly like her own. But Kat couldn't tell what was being asked or what the familiar voice was answering.

Old memories surfaced in her mind. Going to school, being with friends, her and Teli's many bike rides into the mountains. Her family, the many vacations they had gone on and her calico cat that slept on her pillow at night. It all seemed like years ago. Other memories threatened to surface, about Teli and her search for answers. But somehow Kat was afraid to let these rise to the top.

Then suddenly the blinding redness stopped and Kat's left eye could focus on the fuzzy shapes around her. The shouting stopped as well. A tall blonde woman turned and shot questions over her shoulder, punching codes into some keypad.

Kat felt a rush of cool liquid enter her vein from an IV she had just become aware of. Whatever drug flowed into her, it seemed to clear her mind. The cottony confusion dissolved and the shapes in front of her eyes became focused.

"Where am I?" Kat managed to ask, recognizing her voice as her own. The older blonde woman turned sharply from the keypad and glared at Kat. She looked about to spit out some cruel reply when Kat's heart monitor started beeping erratically, distracting the woman.

"Get her out of here." She snapped, turning her attention to a computer monitor and started typing frantically. Kat felt pressure taken off of her wrists and ankles, the IV ripped from her arm. She was lifted out of the chair and carried out of the horrible room.

* * *

_Teli, what are you doing?_ Tye asked quickly, coming up behind his sister. He had heard her shout just as his trace program had located its target.

_I'm getting Kat out of there._ Teli replied, never looking away from the screen in front of her. Turning off the red laser had been easy; telling the computer to give Kat the drug had been more difficult. Now she was distracting the evil-looking lady from the computer screen with the erratic beeping of the monitor.

Tye looked on over Teli's shoulder as she deleted the recently acquired files. They hadn't gotten far with Kat's questioning, to which both twins were relieved.

_Wait, go back a sec._ Tye said quickly as different screens flashed past. Teli paused and pulled up the last screen. Tye pointed to a file, which Teli opened. Teli felt her brother stiffen as he scanned the information that popped up.

_Erase this one two?_ Teli asked as she scanned the information. Obviously they had questioned someone else before Kat. Tye nodded stiffly. In moments, both files were deleted and their recovery paths were scrambled. Teli pulled back and the screens dissolved back into the white wall.

_That was close._ She thought as she breathed a sigh of relief. Tye clenched his jaw and turned towards the center of the room.

_Too close. _He replied cryptically. Teli was about to inquire what had changed his mood so suddenly when the light of the room dimmed briefly. Both twins froze and scanned the room quickly.

_They're onto us._ Teli said quickly. Tye nodded, still scanning.

_We have to make a hole, a direct link back to Logan's computer so we can get back._ Tye said, echoing his thoughts.

_A hole that would leak information._ Teli added. She ran back to the place in the floor where they had entered. Teli knelt down and placed her hands on the floor. Tye did the same, opposite to her. The white surface beneath their hands flickered and rippled, pulsing energy out and away from the twins.

_Psycho-cybernetics, Teli._ Tye commented quickly, the term just surfacing out of his memory. Teli nodded. Psycho-cybernetics: the ability to mentally program yourself to your full potential. For Teli and Tye, it went a step farther; with enough mental concentration they could move anywhere in a computer system they need to by mental imaging.

_Bet they never thought that theory would be taken this far._ Teli replied, a cynical note rising in her voice. Tye rolled his eyes; now was not the time to chat about their origins.

_You ready or not?_ He asked, rather sharply. Teli looked down at her hands for a moment, and then nodded.

_Let's get outta here._ The lights flickered again as the words left Teli's lips. _Quickly_. Teli added in response, glancing around at the white, gleaming walls.

In unison, both twins shut their eyes and concentrated. They put together all the pieces and structures of Logan's computer in their minds, reaching out for it.

Teli felt the air around her change and the smooth surface beneath her hands fade away. A sudden cold feeling of isolation pressed on her mind and the through that she had lost Tye almost broke her concentration. But it was a test, a metal block she had to get through in order to make it back to herself. The image of Logan's computer grew stronger in her mind, coming together as particles of energy around her, forming itself in and around her mind. Teli strove to find all the little details, fitting them together like pieces of a puzzle.

The cold vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Teli once again sensed her brother nearby and a sense of relief washed over her. The ground materialized beneath her fingers, and instead of feeling as if she were surrounded by a void, Teli gained back her spatial senses as walls formed around her once again. The mental image was complete, but Teli still double-checked all the pieces before she slowly opened her eyes.

It was astonishing, really. All that was left of the gleaming white walls was a tiny spot, glowing in the space between Teli and Tye's hands. The walls around her now were the darker red and gray shades of a less complex system, where the energy wasn't as pure.

_Go and tell them what we've done, I'll be right out behind you in a minute._ Tye said, as he too opened his eyes on Logan's computer. Teli nodded and took one reassuring glance around, glad to find the familiar settings, before she closed her eyes again and pulled away from the computer connection.

* * *

Teli blinked and slowly sat up straight in her chair. Pain immediately seared through her head, and she pressed her fingers to her temples. It had been a long, long while since she had been in a system for such an extended time, and she had forgotten the headaches that always followed.

Teli looked up. Three curious faces peered at her. Max was the first to speak.

"Are you okay, Teli? What did you two do in there?" She asked quickly. Teli tried to speak as she had to Tye inside the computer, and found that no words came forth.

"I'm...okay. Just a headache." Teli slowly responded, after a moment of concentrating on how to vocally form words again. Max nodded.

"I'll go get you some aspirin." Max said quickly, jumping up and heading for the kitchen. She was back a moment later with a glass of water and a bottle of pills. Teli smiled in thanks.

"He'll probably want some too when he comes out." She said, indicating to her brother. Teli glanced to the computer screen to see what was taking Tye so long. Two windows were open, and she could tell that Tye was putting the final touches on the trace program they had created.

"What is he doing in there? And how did you two break into that network?" Logan asked quickly, finally breaking out of his astonished silence.

"He's finishing the trace program." Teli said, as she swallowed two pills of aspirin. "We created a link from the Manticore network to your computer so you'll have access to their files without having to break in each time. Plus, they shouldn't be able to tell you're in there." She further explained, pointing to a box still open on the screen. Logan sat back in his chair and nodded, looking impressed.

"But how did you two get into the network to begin with?" Jondy asked, pressing for more details. Teli took a deep breath, unconsciously touching the cable line still attached at her wrist.

"It's hard to explain really," Teli started, looking up at Jondy's curious face. "See, we have these... ports," Teli indicated her wrist, "so we can essentially plug ourselves into a computer system. Once we're plugged in, we just close our eyes concentrate on the system. That brings us into the computer and from there we can go ... pretty much anywhere we need." It was the best Teli could come up with at the moment.

"It's kinda like stepping into another world, but a world that we can control." All eyes shot to Tye as he spoke. He half-laughed at their surprised faces. No one had noticed when he opened his eyes; they were all to intently listening to Teli.

Both twins unplugged from the computer and allowed Logan the chance to examine what they had done. Tye gladly taking the aspirin Max offered.

"So, what did I miss?" A cocky male voice asked from the doorway, surprising those within.

"Alec. You just have a knack for turning up, don't you?" Max asked with a sarcastic grin.

"He just walked right in, Max. Said he was looking for you." Zane's voice called from the hallway. Teli noticed the tightness in his tone immediately.

"It's okay, Zane. This is Alec, another X5. He's here to help." Max explained. Alec's eyebrows shot up as if to ask 'oh really?' but quickly went down again as Max shot him a look. Teli glanced over at Tye, who was also looking amused by the interactions.

_What about Kat and Ali?_ Teli asked her brother, not wanting to voice her concerns before they had reached a consensus. Tye's amused expression turned immediately serious.

_We have to get them back. With or without their help._ He replied quickly.

_I think with would be better._ Teli quipped, annoyed with her brother's quick assumption that help would be hard to get. She turned to Max.

"Max, can we talk to you? You and Zane and Jondy?" Teli asked quietly, almost under her breath. Max seemed to ponder the request for a moment, but didn't argue, just nodded and indicated for the twins to go into the living room.

A few minutes later, Teli and Tye, their mentors, and Max were all seated around Logan's coffee table, the late evening sun glinting in through the huge windows.

"Alright, we're here. Spill it." Max said quickly. Her intuition told her this was about something they had found inside the computer. Teli and Tye exchanged a glance.

"When we were inside the Manticore system we found... we found some files indicating that two of our friends have been ... interviewed by the Director." Teli explained. Nearly identical images flashed through the X5s' minds. All interviews with the Director came special with a red laser and drugs, free of charge.

"Who are these friends exactly, and how much do they know?" Max asked quickly. Zane and Jondy exchanged a look; both had a good guess as to who the two captives were.

"My best friend, Kat. She knows... almost everything I knew before I met Zane." Teli told her quickly. Max shifted her sharp gaze to Tye.

"And my... friend Aliana. She probably knows about the same amount as Kat." Tye said, looking suddenly very worried. Max exchanged a questioning glance with her two siblings.

"I was worried this would happen. Ali was... very involved in Tye's life. I should have warned her myself to be careful." Jondy explained, leaning back into the sofa with a defeated sigh.

"I didn't know Kat knew as much as Teli says, but it doesn't surprise me." Zane said. Then, with a glance at Teli, he asked, "What about Shane?" Teli held his gaze for a moment, and then looked to the ground.

"Shane doesn't know anything." She said quietly. "I didn't even tell him I was leaving."

"Teli and I are going to find them." Tye said firmly. "And we're going to get them out."

"Not without help, you aren't." Jondy replied, standing quickly. Max and Zane rose as well, Max with a confident smile growing on her face.

"Alec, Logan." She called to the two men in the other room. "We've got some planning to do..."


End file.
